Winter Olympics 2026: Why the NFL Feels More Global Than Ever

Every four years the Winter Olympics hit and I get the same feeling, that reminder that sports at their best are bigger than borders.

Flags line up side by side, anthems play, athletes walk in wearing their country proudly on their chest and for a couple of weeks the entire world feels connected through competition.

But when I sit down and watch the opening ceremonies this year I will be thinking about football.

Because the same thing you will be seeing on the ice and snow is happening now on NFL rosters, quietly, slowly, and the 2025 NFL season had more international players than ever.

The NFL Is Becoming More International Every Season

The Olympics aren’t just about medals, it’s about stories, a kid from a small country, an athlete that wasn’t supposed to make it.

That’s what the NFL’s international wave feels like now.

You can watch guys like Jordan Mailata and Michael Dickson from Australia. Men who did not grow up dreaming about the Super Bowl. They didn’t even grow up with football, and now they’re in the league.

That’s Olympic energy in my opinion.

Different background, same stage, pressure, and dream.

Thinking About the Cowboys Through an Olympic Lense

When I think about the Cowboys, I think, tradition, Sunday night lights energy, but even Dallas isn’t immune to the global shift.

In 2025, the Cowboys had real international representation.

Corey Ballentine was born in Jamaica, and Adedayo Odeleye was born in Nigeria but raised in the United Kingdom.

Those are real journeys to make it into the NFL.

Balletine’s path from Montego Bay to the NFL is the exact kind of story you’d see in a 60-second Olympic profile and Odeleye’s route from Africa to Europe to the NFL is the definition of global development.

It doesn’t matter if they aren’t household names, that’s not the point.

The point is they’re here, on the field, wearing a star.

The Part of the Olympics that Isn’t Talked About

What the Olympics always reminds me of is that talent doesn’t live in one place. It never has and never will.

The only difference now, compared to the past, is the access now is different.

The NFL finally built a system that lets international athletes find the sport instead of missing out on football entirely.

Programs like the International Player Pathway aren’t about charity, they’re about uncovering talent that would’ve never touched a football field.

That, to me, feels exactly like what the Olympics do best: give unknown athletes a platform and say, “Let’s see what you got.”

Why It Should Hit different as a Fan

When you watch the Winter Olympics do you root for countries, or do you root for stories?

I cheer for the USA, but the stories of some of these athletes win my cheers.

Same with the NFL.

I will always care about wins and losses, but knowing a guy in a Cowboys’ helmet grew up on another continent adds something for me; It makes the league feel bigger than just the U.S. market and TV ratings.

It, in a small way, makes it feel like the Olympics, if you know the players’ backstory.

Different flags, but the same dream.

This is the type of thing that keeps the NFL fresh.

Football may have been invented in the USA, but the 2025 season didn’t solely belong to America.

It belonged to anyone crazy enough to chase it.