The NFL is looking for new markets; Saudi Arabia is looking for new sports. So next year, some of the NFL’s biggest stars will play in Saudi Arabia, a country where football means soccer.

On March 21, Fanatics, which runs the league’s online merchandise shop, will produce a flag football event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, that will feature former stars such as Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski as well as a host of current players. The event is a foothold for Fanatics: The Saudi sovereign wealth fund invested in the online licensed sports goods retailer in 2017, as did the Qatari sovereign wealth fund in 2022. Fanatics also sells sports memorabilia, and customers from the Middle East have been among its biggest buyers in recent years.

The NFL will not produce the event, but team owners are allowin

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