Patriots Owner Peels Back Curtain to NFL’s Future Plans

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft has served in his role since 1994 and has seen great success over his 32-season tenure.

Kraft has overseen the Patriots win six Super Bowls under quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick, tying for the most of any franchise in NFL history and building one of football's greatest dynasties.

The NFL has changed in many ways during those three-plus decades that Kraft has been at the helm of the Patriots.

Changes to the structure of the NFL and how things operate are always in motion, including one massive alteration to its future.

Patriots' Robert Kraft Wants Extra Regular Season Game

Kraft spoke on 98.5 The Sports Hub about his desire for adding an extra game to the NFL regular season, increasing it from 17 contests to 18.

Oct 5, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft before the game at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

He also argued that every team would play one international game per season and eliminate a preseason game, making it just two preseason contests per year.

Kraft argued that the NFL's popularity on television and with fans in the stands shows that people want more football.

He also said that plaing an extra game will bring in more money for the players, which will help out in labor negotiations.

"I want to tell you guys that we're going to push like the Dickens now, to make international more important with us," Kraft said.

"Every team will go to 18 [regular season] games and two [preseason] games and eliminate one of the preseason games and every team, every year will play one game overseas and part of the reason is so we can continue to grow the gap and keep our labor happy because we're short of getting near the top here, you know, with the coverage.

"What, 93 of the top 100 programs on television are NFL games. Think about that. It's really amazing and you look at the size of our crowds compared to the other sports and it's really, we had that Amazon game on Thursday, couple weeks ago. 31 million people streamed.

"So as long as we can keep growing revenue, we can keep growing labor peace."

The NFL is looking to remove a preseason game in favor of increasing the regular season to 18 games while giving every team an international game, #Patriots owner Robert Kraft said on @ZoandBertrand. pic.twitter.com/DKeFs8ZsIi
— 98.5 The Sports Hub (@985TheSportsHub) January 20, 2026

History of Regular Season Length/International Games

The NFL played a variety of games early on until settling at 14 games in 1961, due to competition with the AFL.

When the NFL-AFL merger occurred, they still kept the 14 game-season through the 1977 season, before moving to 16 games in 1978.

The NFL kept it a 16-game season for almost every season through 2020, aside from 1982 and 1987 due to strikes.

They increased it to 17 games in 2021 and have had it for five straight seasons, with one bye week, which the NFL had almost every season from 1994-2020 at just 16 games and a bye week.

International games have increased in recent years, as the NFL has wanted to broaden its worldwide fan base.

NFL Europe was one venture the league tried to build interest, but having actual NFL teams play regular season games overseas ended up being much more successful.

The NFL went from having just one or two games per year at Wembley Stadium in London, U.K. to then expanding to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Twickerham Stadium also hosting a game or two a season.

Many NFL teams now have international home marketing areas (HMA), which gives an NFL team marketing rights in that area over five years.

The Patriots currently have an HMA in Austria, Germany and Switzerland in Europe, plus Brazil in South America.

New England faced the Indianapolis Colts at Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt, Germany in 2023, a 10-6 defeat in Week 10.

Nov 12, 2023; Frankfurt, Germany; New England Patriots wide receiver Demario Douglas (81) runs with the ball against the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth quarter during an International Series game at Deutsche Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Patriots have also played three games at Wembley Stadium, with wins over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 35-7 on Oct. 25, 2009 and the St. Louis Rams, 45-7. on Oct. 28, 2012, plus most recently a 32-16 defeat to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 7 of the 2024 season.

New England also dominated the Oakland Raiders, 33-8 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on Nov. 19, 2017, one of five NFL games played in the country.

NFL games took place for the first time in Ireland and Spain this season, Brazil had two games the past two seasons and will have another in 2026, while Australia will get their first NFL game in 2026.

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