By Rory Carroll

(Reuters) – The NFL hopes its international games this season will act as “mini-Super Bowls” for fans outside the United States as the league continues to expand its presence abroad, a league official said.

After playing a sell-out game in Sao Paulo on its first trip to South America last month, the league returns to London on Sunday where Aaron Rodgers and the Jets take on Sam Darnold and the unbeaten Vikings at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

In addition to the beefed-up pregame and halftime shows, clubs are engaging with their fans through pub takeovers and flag football events in the English capital, NFL vice president Peter O’Reilly told Reuters.

“For us, it’s really about having mini-Super Bowls,” O’Reilly said of the league’s championship game.

“We think about everything we do around the game – the exterior of the stadium, creating big pre-game moments like playing the national anthems of the two countries and delivering remarkable halftime performances.”

Sunday’s game will be the 37th NFL game played in London and will honor London native, two-time Super Bowl champion Osi Umenyiora and five-time Pro Bowler Jared Allen.

“It never gets boring for me because there is so much energy in these games,” O’Reilly said.

Despite safety concerns leading up to the game and a slippery playing surface, the clash between the Eagles and Packers at Corinthians Arena in Sao Paulo in September was a success and O’Reilly said the NFL hopes to make it a fixture on the schedule.

“It’s too early to announce anything about a return, but based on the response to this game we will be back,” he said.

Luisa Sonza’s moving rendition of Brazil’s national anthem and pop star Anitta’s energetic halftime performance were both worthy of the Big Game, in a country home to 36 million NFL fans, according to the league.

After the Jets-Vikings game on Sunday, the Bears will play the Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 13th before action moves to Wembley Stadium, where the Jaguars will face the Patriots on October 20th.

The Panthers will face the Giants on November 10th in Munich, Germany at the Allianz Arena.

The NFL is poised to further expand its international presence in 2025 with its first regular season game in Spain at Real Madrid football club’s Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

(This story has been corrected to remove reference in paragraph 6 that rapper Aitch will perform at halftime.)

(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles; Editing by Toby Davis)