NFL China during the 2015 NFC Championship game at CenturyLink Field on January 18, 2015 in Seattle, Washington.

The NFL may be heading to China. A source tells Alex Marvez of Fox Sports that the league is conducting “a detailed analysis” to host a regular-season football game in China as early as 2018. The league had previously tried to host a preseason game in Beijing, but game was canceled and never played.

The NFL continues its quest to expand outside of North America, as the league holds multiple games every year in London, England, and is set to return to Mexico City next season. Holding a game in China makes sense for numerous reasons, as it’s the most populated place in the world, and growing football in the country has huge revenue potential for the league. Marvez reports multiple teams have expressed interest in being chosen for the event.

As Marvez notes, a new league (the China American Football League) is trying to establish itself in the country, is set to play this year, and is holding tryouts in the U.S. for American players. With soccer growing in popularity in China, the NFL is likely hoping football can follow its lead. Who knows, maybe down the road, the six-team league has the potential to make moves like Chinese soccer teams have, paying ridiculous money for talented players across the globe.

But China isn’t the only target on the NFL’s radar – Albert Breer of NFL.com is reporting that the NFL is looking to host a game in Germany as early as the 2017 season.

For now, a potential game in China hasn’t been confirmed by the NFL. Given how much sense it would make, I’d expect this report to be more than a rumor sooner rather than later, however.

[Fox Sports]

About Liam McGuire

Social +Staff writer for The Comeback & Awful Announcing. Liammcguirejournalism@gmail.com