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Commissioner Roger Goodell reiterated the NFL’s intention to evaluate playing a Pro Bowl in Brazil.
His remarks came in a news conference following league meetings Wednesday in San Francisco.
The 2016 Pro Bowl is contracted for Aloha Stadium but future sites for the annual NFL all-star game have not been announced.
Goodell acknowledged the possibility of playing regular-season games in Germany and Mexico and also said, “There’s been some interest in playing a Pro Bowl in Rio (de Janeiro). So we are going to evaluate all those. There’s a growing passion for our game on a global basis and we want to respond to it. We want to respond to it in the right way, in the right markets we think are a priority for us, so we can continue to grow this great game.”
Goodell said, “We are excited about where we are. We are excited about the passion for our game and taking it to another level.”
The 2015 Pro Bowl was played in Arizona, only the second time since 1980 that the game was held outside of Honolulu.
It is the second time in two months that an NFL executive has publicly discussed the possibility of taking the Pro Bowl to Brazil. In March, NFL vice president of communications Michael Signora said, “For 2017 and beyond, we are studying the future of the Pro Bowl.” He said, “Brazil, an area with a growing number of NFL fans, as a possible host is one of the ideas that seems to hold a lot of appeal for additional analysis.”
Earlier this year the Hawaii Tourism Authority said, “…we look forward to continuing our long-standing relationship next year with an opportunity to host the game in 2017.”