The Miami Dolphins will play in the NFL's first-ever regular-season game in Spain when Madrid hosts a matchup next season at iconic Bernabéu Stadium, the league announced Friday.
The Dolphins will be the designated “home” team at Real Madrid 's venue, which features a soccer pitch that retracts to make way for a field that can be used for American football. It has a capacity of just over 78,000.
"We are thrilled to play the NFL’s inaugural game in Spain, a country of rich history, tradition and passion and home to a vibrant Dolphins fanbase,” said Tom Garfinkel, the Dolphins' vice chairman, president and CEO.
The date of the game and Miami's opponent will be announced this spring.
The Dolphins and the Chicago Bears hold marketing rights in Spain as part of the league’s Global Markets Program, which allows teams to hold events and sign commercial deals in those locations.
“The exciting first-ever game in Spain underlines the NFL’s continued commitment to expanding its global footprint and reaching new audiences across the world,” said Brett Gosper, the league's head of Europe and APAC.
Miami missed the playoffs after going 8-9 this season.
The Dolphins are 2-5 in games played outside the United States and have lost their past four international games, mostly recently in Frankfurt, Germany in 2023 when they lost 21-14 to the Kansas City Chiefs. Miami has played five times in London and once in Toronto.
Miami's 2025 schedule features home games against its AFC East rivals — the Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots and New York Jets — as well as the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Los Angeles Chargers, and Washington Commanders.
The NFL has been aggressively expanding its global footprint in search of new fans and revenue streams. Partnering with one of the most successful soccer clubs in the world is a branding bonanza.
"This partnership with the NFL will bring one of the world’s most prestigious sporting competitions to the Santiago Bernabéu, a stadium which has welcomed millions of passionate fans from around the globe to enjoy incredible sporting experiences,” said Real Madrid institutional relations director Emilio Butragueño.
Bernabéu, located in the heart of the Spanish capital, is leading candidate to host the final of t he 2030 World Cup.
As of the 2025 season, the NFL can schedule up to eight league-operated regular-season games internationally.
London will stage three games next season — two at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and one at Wembley Stadium. The Jets and Cleveland Browns are the home teams at Tottenham; and the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley.
Berlin will also host a regular-season game for the first time with the Indianapolis Colts the home team at Olympic Stadium.
Last September, the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Green Bay Packers 34-29 in Sao Paulo, Brazil — in the NFL's first game in South America.
League commissioner Roger Goodell said in October that Rio de Janeiro could also host a game, and he added that there's “no doubt” that Ireland will get one soon.
The league said last year it is also looking at Australia as a potential host in the future.
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FILE - Police officers ride horses outside the Santiago Bernabeu stadium, ahead of the Champions League quarterfinal first leg soccer match between Real Madrid and Manchester City in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, April 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrea Comas, File)
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Malik Washington, center, runs the ball during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
COTONOU, Benin (AP) — Voters in Benin cast ballots on Sunday to choose a successor to President Patrice Talon, who is stepping down after a decade in power, leaving a mixed legacy of economic growth, a growing jihadi insurgency in the north, and the suppression of opposition critics.
Romuald Wadagni, the 49-year-old finance minister and governing coalition standard-bearer, is considered Talon’s anointed successor for the seven-year term. Wadagni is being challenged by Paul Hounkpè, the sole opposition candidate.
Nearly 8 million are registered to vote across more than 17,000 polling stations in the West African nation. Benin had over 15 million people in 2024, and like many sub-Saharan African countries, its population is overwhelmingly young. Polls are expected to close at 4 p.m. with the results expected within 48 hours.
Turnout has been low in recent years, and polling stations in Cotonou, the largest city, were sparsely attended throughout the morning. The city was quiet as the election began, with public demonstrations banned on election day, but stores and streets remain open.
Analysts widely expect Wadagni to win after a parliamentary election in January, during which the opposition failed to cross the 20% threshold required to win seats, leaving Talon’s two allied parties in control of all 109 seats in the National Assembly.
Renaud Agbodjo, leader of the Democrats, was barred from competing after failing to secure a sufficient number of parliamentary endorsements — a threshold critics say was engineered to keep rivals out.
Wadagni has touted the country's economic growth during his decade as finance minister as his key strength. Benin’s economy grew 7% last year, making it one of West Africa’s steadiest performers.
“Ten years at the Finance Ministry have given him something rare in African politics: a quantified record — verifiable and difficult to dismantle in a serious debate,” said Fiacre Vidjingninou, political analyst at the Lagos-based Béhanzin Institute.
While Benin has historically been among the most stable democracies in Africa, opposition leaders and human rights organizations have accused Talon of using the justice system as a tool to sideline his political opponents.
Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have denounced a sustained crackdown on dissent under Talon, citing arbitrary detentions, tighter restrictions on public demonstrations, and mounting pressure on independent media outlets.
Protests over the rising cost of living sprang up in recent years, but the government and security forces clamped down on any dissent.
Beverly Ochieng, an analyst at the Control Risks Group consulting firm, told The Associated Press that, in the event of a Wadagni victory, the new government will likely continue Talon's policies aimed at positioning Benin as a stable investment environment, while facing a largely constrained opposition.
“Wadagni may want to avert a crisis in confidence by first consolidating power then engaging in dialogue with opponents to demonstrate goodwill,” Ochieng said.
In December, a group of military officers attempted to topple Talon’s government in a failed coup, the latest in a series of recent military takeover attempts across Africa. Most attempted coups follow a similar pattern of disputed elections, constitutional upheaval, security crises, and youth discontent.
Among the coup leaders’ key complaints was the deterioration of security in northern Benin.
For years, Benin has faced spillover violence in its north from neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger in their battle against the al-Qaida-affiliated extremist group Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, or JNIM.
The tri-border area has long been a hotbed for extremist violence, a trend worsened by the lack of security cooperation with Niger and Burkina Faso, both now led by military juntas.
Electoral officials prepare presidential ballot papers at a polling station in Cotonou, Benin, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Abadjaye Justin Sodogandji)
A woman is verified before casting her ballot at a polling station in Cotonou, Benin, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Abadjaye Justin Sodogandji)
A man casts his ballot at a polling station in Cotonou, Benin, Sunday, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Abadjaye Justin Sodogandji)
A motorcyclist stands beside a billboard featuring presidential candidate Paul Hounkpe in Cotonou, Benin, Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abadjaye Justin Sodogandji)
Presidential candidate Romuald Wadagni greets supporters at a campaign rally in Cotonou, Benin, Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abadjaye Justin Sodogandji)
Road users pass in front of a campaign billboard for presidential candidate Paul Hounkpe and his running mate, Rock Hounwanou in Cotonou, Benin, Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abadjaye Justin Sodogandji)
