Story by
NFL Scheduler Reveals How Minnesota Vikings Got Back-to-Back International Games
- Story by
- NFL Scheduler Reveals How Minnesota Vikings Got Back-to-Back International Games
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Minnesota Vikings fans were surprised when reports started breaking that they were heading overseas for the second straight season, this time to Dublin, Ireland for a "road game" against the Pittsburgh Steelers .
After they played in London, England last season, another international contest right away doesn't usually happen (unless you're the Jacksonville Jaguars ). Thus, when rumors that the MN Vikings could actually play, not just one, but back-to-back games across the pond turned reality … heads really turned.
Advertisement
There are opinions on both sides — regarding whether or not two international games are a good thing for the Vikings, who will play week four in Dublin and week five in London, before getting week 6 as their bye — but the more information we get on how this overseas doubleheader came into being, the more we realize that this was just as much Vikings-driven as it was league-driven.
How did the Minnesota Vikings end up with back-to-back international games?
This week, NFL schedule-maker Mike North went on the Ross Tucker podcast where he pulled back the curtain on how it all went down. It was Roger Goodell who first broached the idea to North. He did not think there was any chance the Vikings would be interested, but he asked anyway.
To his surprise, however, Vikings leadership went from what North described as "open-minded, to willing, to kind of eager" toward the opportunity. Thus, the Minnesota Vikings and the league worked out the details together and made it happen.
Per Mike North, NFL Schedule Creator, the Vikings went from "open minded, to willing, to kind of eager" to try something new with back to back international games in different cities.
With the Vikings are fully on board, it can't come soon enough. pic.twitter.com/cl7eUddTWf— The Purple Persuasion (@TPPSkol) May 15, 2025
"When we got into international games, I basically reached out to all the teams, and said, 'hey Vikings, you see the schedule. You know Pittsburgh is hosting a game in Dublin. You know you are a road opponent for the Steelers this year. There's a chance you could be chosen to go to Ireland.
Subsequent phone call: 'Hey Vikings, you know you're playing the Browns this year. They're hosting a game in London. You know you're a possible opponent to play the Browns in London this year. And it was actually commissioner Goodell who said, 'do you think they'd want to do both?', and I said 'absolutely not, no chance.
But I called them and I talked to them and they went from open-minded to willing to kind of eager. And so we kind of partnered up with them, figured out a way to innovate, try something new here, and they worked with our ops team…and they're going to spend the week over there and it'll be a good test for us."
So there you have it. The Minnesota Vikings drove the bus on their overseas doubleheader, after Goodell floated the idea to North, who then (to his surprise) took the idea and ran with it. But who in the Vikings organization is leading the international effort?
Advertisement
Why Kevin O'Connell invites these overseas games
According to the Star Tribune's Ben Goessling
and Andrew Krammer
, on the latest episode of the Access Vikings podcast
, it's head coach Kevin O'Connell driving Minnesota's overseas bus
plane. And there are a couple of reasons — some football-related, and some not.
First, Krammer points to something O'Connell told international reporters, when speaking to them following the league's announcement last week. KOC likes the idea of having McCarthy's rookie weeks four and five to be played in the friendlier confines of Croke Park (IE) and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (UK), instead of Heinz Field (Pittsburgh) and Huntington Bank Field ( Cleveland ).
"O'Connell went as far as to say that Europe is a better backdrop for JJ McCarthy, than Pittsburgh or Cleveland. He said those can be hostile environments, going on the road in the AFC North for a young quarterback, depending on when those games could fall."
It doesn't necessarily seem like the competitive balance aspect — whether that be more neutral road crowds for their rookie quarterback or whatever other advantages come with playing two roadgames overseas — was the biggest driver in Minnesota's eagerness, though.
Advertisement
Related: Apparently, Sportsbooks Have Not Learned Their Lesson on the Minnesota Vikings
According to Goessling, it's Kevin O'Connell's ability to see the bigger picture, beyond just the football game played on the field. KOC seems to understand how important back-to-back international games will be for the Minnesota Vikings brand, especially after playing in London two of the past three seasons, even prior to 2025.
"I think it it is something that you have heard them embrace And I think Kevin O'Connell specifically. I mean, every time that he's been over there, he talks about 'we love expanding our brand, introducing fans around the world to the Vikings and the way we do things.
It does not hurt to have a head coach who I think is open enough and understands enough of the business side of this, and the marketing side of this to say, 'Yeah we can make this work.' I don't think that is an accident that this has picked up. Because the pace of this has picked up, with Kevin O'Connell as the coach. It's three times in four years now that he's been the head coach that they've been in the UK and four games in four years internationally.
Advertisement
Mike Zimmer did this once and you could tell he wasn't a big fan of it…So the fact that it happened once in Mike Zimmer's eight years and it's now happened three times, four games in Kevin O'Connell's four years, I don't think that's an accident. I think the head coach buying into this is a big factor here.
If you listen to the rest of the Vikings Access podcast uploaded on Friday, you'll start planning your yearly Minnesota Vikings preparations around at least one international game. Because with KOC bought in on the idea of expanding the MN Vikings brand, it sounds like going overseas could become a very regular thing going forward.
