The NFL’s latest international game produced a record audience, and the timing could hardly have been more dramatic. Baltimore’s 34-31 victory over Dallas in Rio de Janeiro became the most-watched international NFL game on record, averaging 29.9 million viewers on CBS. The game also ended with a last-second field goal, giving an already historic broadcast an unforgettable finish.
1. The Brazil Game Set a New NFL Audience Record
The Baltimore Ravens’ 34-31 victory over the Dallas Cowboys in Rio de Janeiro averaged 29.9 million viewers on CBS. That made it the most-watched NFL international game in history, according to Nielsen figures reported by The Associated Press.
The audience grew even larger during the final moments. More than 30 million viewers were watching when Ravens kicker Tyler Loop connected on a 56-yard field goal on the final play to give Baltimore the victory.
2. The Game Was Decided on the Final Play
The record audience had plenty of reason to stay until the end. Baltimore and Dallas traded scores throughout the game before the Ravens got the final possession with the score tied 31-31.
Loop then delivered the decisive moment, hitting a 56-yard field goal as time expired. Baltimore walked away with a 34-31 victory, turning the first NFL regular-season game at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracanã Stadium into a dramatic finish.
3. It Was a Different Kind of International Broadcast
The Brazil game also benefited from where it appeared on the U.S. television schedule. CBS carried the matchup in a national late-Sunday-afternoon window, rather than placing it on a smaller cable network or streaming service.
That helped put the game in front of a much larger domestic audience. The NFL’s international games have increasingly been distributed across traditional television and streaming platforms, but this matchup reached viewers through one of the league’s biggest broadcast windows.
4. The Number Stands Out Against Recent International Games
The 29.9 million average was substantially higher than recent international NFL broadcasts cited by the AP. The San Francisco 49ers’ Week 1 game against the Los Angeles Rams in Australia averaged 18.5 million U.S. viewers on Netflix.
Last year’s Week 1 international game in Brazil, featuring the Los Angeles Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs, also averaged 18.5 million viewers, although it was streamed on YouTube. The six other international games played last year and shown on NFL Network averaged 6.2 million viewers.
5. More International Games Are Still Coming
The record in Brazil is not the end of the NFL’s international schedule for 2026. Seven more international games are scheduled this season, including matchups in London, Munich and Mexico City.
The NFL has steadily expanded its international schedule, with games now reaching cities across Europe, North America, South America and Australia. The league says 62 regular-season games had been played outside the United States heading into the 2026 season, with Melbourne, Rio de Janeiro and Paris joining the list of host cities this year.
The Brazil audience record adds another notable milestone to that expansion, while the remaining games will give the league more opportunities to bring regular-season football to international audiences.
