How European Football Could Learn From The NFL Model
Examining whether North American sporting principles could reshape Europe's top leagues, addressing fixture congestion and competitive imbalance.
European football (soccer) is often critiqued for overloaded schedules and a few clubs dominating their respective leagues. In contrast, the NFL has strict salary caps, equal revenue sharing, and a simple post-season structure that tends to produce parity and substantial fan interest each week. Analysts argue that Europe’s top leagues might boost competition and fan engagement by adopting similar principles to improve the sport.
Over recent years, players and officials have raised concerns that an excessive number of games can harm player health and even lead to fan fatigue. Meanwhile, the NFL thrives with a shorter season featuring fewer, high-stakes games. If other leagues reduced extra fixtures, each remaining fixture would carry greater significance, potentially boosting TV ratings and stadium atmosphere. The core structure of the NFL might include:
Strict Salary Caps & Revenue Sharing: The NFL enforces a hard cap (and splits TV money equally), which “creates more parity in the sport”. By contrast, Europe’s elite clubs spend without limit. (Notably, the English Premier League has even proposed a first-ever salary cap for 2025–26, roughly $653M covering wages, transfers and agents.)
A Simplified Competition Structure: NFL teams play one 17-game regular season plus playoffs. European clubs, however, juggle a long league schedule (38 games in England, 34–38 in other leagues) and multiple cups (league cup, FA/ national cup, domestic supercups, plus UCL/UEL, etc.). Experts believe this dilutes fan interest and overloads players.
Protecting Player Health: NFL players have a fixed 17 to 20-game season if they make the NFL Playoffs/Super Bowl and then months off. In contrast A UEFA-backed study covering 21 seasons found that hamstring injuries doubled from 12% to 24% among players, with researchers linking the rise to increased fixture congestion and match intensity.
Scarcity (Boost Demand): Each NFL game is a rare, big event, drawing about 16 million American viewers on average. With only 17 regular-season games, each contest feels meaningful and creates high anticipation. By contrast, European football features dozens of fixtures across multiple competitions, leading to fan fatigue.
"But if you pour more liquid into a cup that is already full, it will overflow. That is what is happening at the moment, not just in terms of the calendar but in terms of the players’ ability to be able to perform at their best...” Premier League CEO, Richard Masters
The NFL uses a strict salary cap and profit-sharing to maintain balance, this ensures teams cannot simply outspend others for talent, making it harder for dynasties to form. Experts note that this creates more parity and lets different teams win championships over time. By contrast, Europe’s football leagues has no cap, so the richest clubs consistently dominate. Even governing bodies are considering change.
For example, reports confirm the Premier League plans to vote on a new spending cap in 2025. If adopted, it would limit total spending on wages, transfers, and agent fees to a multiple of the lowest-revenue club’s income around £500M ($653M/€600M). Introducing caps could help mid-level clubs compete more fairly. Some analysts argue even a simple cap could make leagues like the Premier League more unpredictable and competitive.
The NFL’s schedule is famously simple: one main league, one playoff tournament, then the Super Bowl. European football’s calendar is far more congested. For example: a top English club plays 38 league games, up to 6 in the EFL Cup (League Cup), up to 8 in the FA Cup, 6–13 in the UCL, plus one or two in super cups and now potentially 7 in an expanded Club World Cup. This multitude of competitions means clubs often play multiple games per week.
Fans must split their attention among meaningless early-round cup ties, league matches, and midweek European games. FIFPro and European leagues have filed legal complaints arguing the calendar is oversaturated, players simply have too many games between league, cups and international duty. The Premier League has not itself expanded, but European competition have, making club schedules far busier than in the past.
In practice, NFL teams have only 16–17 games before playoffs. If football leagues imposed a similar limit; lets say, league, national knockout cup, continental cup, each match would be rarer and arguably more appealing. Matches on league calendars could then command greater broadcast and ticket demand, much like NFL games do. This scarcityapproach has worked for the NFL, every Sunday night game is treated as an event.
Players’ associations in Europe are pushing back. The PFA (England players’ union) recommends capping a player’s season at around 50–60 games and mandating sufficient breaks. FIFPro’s survey found 72% of players would like a shorter calendar with rest periods. By comparison, NFL contracts and the NFL Players Association mandate a fixed season length (17 games) and protect off-season rest. This helps NFL players stay fresher and avoid many injuries.
For fans, a schedule overloaded with low-stakes games can feel boring or repetitive. European managers warn that when players are fatigued, the product suffers. Masters of the Premier League noted that if clubs reach a Club World Cup final and then must start the next domestic season with almost no rest, the teams will suffer. In the NFL, with its lean calendar, players are better rested each week, making games faster-paced and more competitive.
One might wonder if fewer games would hurt revenues. Interestingly, the NFL generates enormous revenue despite its compact schedule. In 2024, the NFL’s total revenue was about $23B (€21.2B; $720M per team). Europe’s entire big fiveleagues together pulled in roughly €38B in 2023/24, nearly double the NFL’s total but spread across about 96 clubs. This shows that high revenue can coexist with fewer, highly valued games.
Each NFL franchise earns roughly as much as two Premier League clubs combined, with PL teams averaging around €355M each versus approximately €603M per NFL team. This demonstrates that massive revenue is achievable alongside a smaller number of fixtures. The NFL’s model shares TV income equally among teams, allowing even smaller teams to thrive financially, additionally, it focuses on maximising the value and appeal.
In Europe, broadcasting deals have grown, but much of the money is concentrated among a few clubs. Deloitte reports that big-five league revenue has plateaued with modest growth of 4 percent to €38B despite more competitions. Some clubs worry about oversupply, and FIFA struggles to sell TV rights for its expanded Club World Cup. Meanwhile, the FIFA World Cup remains wildly popular, suggesting fans prefer marquee events.
The NFL’s approach has boosted infrastructure, with teams regularly upgrading stadiums because each home game is a major event. European clubs also invest in stadiums, but fewer games could focus resources on making every match bigger and more memorable. On competitive balance, a salary cap like the NFL’s would force clubs to manage budgets carefully, with smaller clubs able to invest more in youth development and coaching.
Many football experts suggest European leagues could learn from the NFL’s example. Enforcing spending limits and simplifying schedules would foster closer competition, protect player health, and maintain fan excitement. The NFL shows that less can be more because a limited schedule of marquee weekly games generates huge interest and revenue. By contrast, Europe’s model faces criticism as players fear burnout and officials warn of fan saturation.
If global club championships are necessary, the existing World Cup already offers the ultimate international stage. Adding another lengthy club tournament mostly provokes grumbling among fans and players. Europe’s leagues could slim down and cap costs, following the NFL’s lead to ensure every game and title truly matters. This shift would help preserve the sport’s excitement, protect players, and re-engage fans hungry for meaningful competition.