- Published:
- Friday 11 September 2026
Melbourne will make sporting history today by hosting the NFL’s first regular-season game in the Asia-Pacific region.
It will become the first city in the world to host a tennis Grand Slam, Formula 1 Grand Prix and NFL regular-season game – cementing our reputation as Australia’s sporting capital.
For tens of millions of viewers around the world, the MCG and Melbourne will be the backdrop to one of the biggest events on the global sporting calendar.
The game will be streamed on Netflix to close to 200 countries with a potential audience of 325 million subscribers.
The NFL will deliver a major economic boost for Melbourne.
More than $300 million is expected to flow through local businesses as fans fill venues across the city in one of the busiest weekends of the year for hospitality.
Hotel demand is also tracking towards an all-time record for September, as visitors from across Australia and around the world descend on Melbourne for the game.
The NFL is turning global attention into future tourism, with Visit Victoria’s US campaign already generating more than 30 million views across the United States.
The United States is one of Victoria’s most valuable tourism markets, with more than 215,000 US visitors spending $430 million and staying 2.5 million nights in Victoria in the year to March 2026.
By bringing the NFL to Melbourne, we are putting our city in front of millions of potential visitors and showing the world what makes Victoria such an incredible place to visit, work, study and do business.
Victoria attracts some of the biggest sporting events on the planet because we know how to put on a great show.
These events fill our hotels, restaurants, pubs and shops, support local jobs and bring visitors into our state.
Melbourne has earned its reputation as Australia’s sporting capital.
Hosting the NFL is another major moment that shows the world why.
Quotes attributable to Premier Ben Carroll
“The world is watching Melbourne as we showcase our city, our culture and all that makes Victoria one of the world’s best destinations.”
“Victoria is the real winner today – thousands of visitors are spending money in our hotels, restaurants and venues right across the state.”
Quote attributable to Minister for Major Events Anthony Carbines
“This is exactly why we go after major events like the NFL – you can feel the excitement in the air, fans from around the world are in our city and the biggest names in sport are choosing Victoria as their stage.”
Quotes attributable to Minister for Tourism Natalie Suleyman
“The United States is one of Victoria’s most valuable tourism markets, with more than 215,000 US visitors spending $430 million and staying 2.5 million nights in Victoria in the year to March 2026.”
“By bringing the NFL to Melbourne, we are putting our city in front of millions of potential visitors and showing the world what makes Victoria such an incredible place to visit, work, study and do business.”