Which NFL Teams are the Most Popular to UAE Audiences?

Fans will tune in for the NFL week 1 odds as soon as they go live, and the ability to wager on these matches in a variety of ways has been a key way the NFL has been able to grow.

NFL Season Pass has made the league more accessible, their long YouTube highlights too. Media providers in countries around the word have also ensured they have gained rights to show live games as well.

Most Popular Teams

• Kansas City Chiefs

If you are a regular in the Super Bowl, you’re going to build a global following. With a player like Patrick Mahomes at quarterback too, fans will tune in for the exciting brand of football he can deliver.

As the Super Bowl is one of the most watched sporting events in the world, a global following can be gathered, especially when. Your team plays high scoring and free-flowing football with big plays to get the crowd on their feet.

• Dallas Cowboys

It’s hard to go anywhere in the world without people knowing all about the Dallas Cowboys. Everything is bigger in Texas, and that goes for their marketing too. The Cowboys have built a image as being ‘America’s Team’ and the first one to mind for people all over the world.

The all-American reputation with the impressive stadium and regular prime-time match allocations, the Cowboys have built a global brand which people from outside the United States love to get behind.

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers

While Mahomes and the Chiefs are the current dominant force, Tom Brady has been considered the Greatest of All Time (GOAT) and his move to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from the New England Patriots in 2020 helped build the Florida based sides global support.

In 2021 The Bucc’s were the most searched team in South American, Africa, Australasia as well as in Arabic countries online. Despite Brady leaving at the end of last season, the Buccaneers now have a strong following abroad to capitalize on.

• New England Patriots

Over the past 10 season, the Patriots won three Super Bowls, and while the fanbase began to really grow around the world, they were on the top of their game.

Their coach, Bill Belichick, is considered on of the best to coach in the NFLs history, and he built a formidable team with Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski and many more big-name players.

UAE’s engagement with the NFL

The NFL has been competing with soccer in the United Arab Emirates for many years as well as basketball. With the rise of a number of notable Arab American players in the NFL, the interest in the league has steadily grown like in many other countries.

Oday Aboushi was the most recent Arab American to play in the league, of Palestinian descent. The Offensive Guard joinined the New York Jets as the 141st overall pick in the NFL Draft. He went on to play for the Houston Texans, Seattle Seahawks, Oakland Raiders, Arizona Cardinals, Detroit Liams, Los Angeles Charges, and last season was part of the Los Angeles Rams roster, though is a free agent now.

With the Super Bowl being an event as much as a game, the half-time show with its superstars from the world of music helps draw crowds in with that extra portion of entertainment.

A seven-team league has been set up in the UAE which was formed by a former Canadian Football League player Dustin Cherniawski along with some partners. They created the Desert Bowl, a tournament in which a regular season is held before a single-elimination playoff tournament to decide the winner.

There are more ways to get involved in the UAE than just the Desert Bowl. One other option being the Emirates Gridiron League, and with more opportunities to play as well as watch, the game has continued to grow.

What has helped this growth of interest in a playing sense has been the influx of American coaches into the country to help provide the authentic and reputable coaching styles which players can enjoy. Andre Sommersell was one who played for the Indianapolis Colts before heading to the UAE to coach.

As more and more countries around the world embrace the NFL, the UAE will not be far behind. There is a sense that the country is keen to develop sports which have not traditionally been played in the country and grow their international appeal.

With the investment possibilities in the country, their domestic opportunities for fans to engage will only grow and they will surely be building their way to being near the top of the list when the NFL looks for further destinations for international games.