Brazil just the beginning as NFL broadens its base

The Chargers played host to the Kansas City Chiefs on Friday in the first of the NFL's record seven international games, with upcoming matchups between different teams in London, Madrid, Dublin and Berlin. Next season, the Rams will plant a flag in Australia with a regular-season game in Melbourne, the league’s first foray Down Under.

- BY SAM FARMER

NEARLY 50,000 people filled Corinthians Arena in the first of seven international games this season.

The NFL is focused on a long-range international strategy, not a series of one-off curiosities.

“It’s the opposite of the circus comes to town,” said Peter O'Reilly, NFL executive vice president of club business, international and league events. “It’s not one-and-done. It’s play the game and be engaged year-round. All clubs now have the rights in at least one market and that’s a long-term commitment. We're investing in the long-term to become a true global sport property.”

That will take some doing, especially in countries such as Brazil, where American football barely registers a blip on the sports radar with interest dwarfed by the passion for soccer.

Still, Corinthians Arena was filled to the brim Friday night with nearly 50,000 people, and fans — overwhelmingly adorned in red Chiefs jerseys — who stood the majority of the game.