Over a dozen NFL players will be competing this preseason as part of the league’s international development program. Not only will they have the chance to make it to their respective team’s 53-man roster, they’ll have special helmet decals for the preseason.
The NFL announced on Thursday that the international players on rosters this offseason can wear their home country’s flag on their helmet during the preseason.
“The NFL International Player Pathway (IPP) program currently has 14 international players on 11 clubs, hailing from eight different countries,” the league said in a statement. “To support the IPP program’s continued growth and exposure, IPP players will be allowed to wear a decal of their home country’s flag on their helmets (in addition to the US flag).”
The 14 international pathway players are Austria’s Sandro Platzgummer and Bernhard Seikovits, UK’s Efe Obada and Christian Wade, Mexico’s Isaac Alarcon and Alfredo Gutierrez, Italy’s Max Pircher, Brazil’s Durval Queiroz Neto, Germany’s David Bada, Aaron Donkor and Jakob Johnson, Chile’s Sammis Reyes, and Australia’s Matt Leo and Jordan Mailata.
Here’s the official memo from the NFL regarding special helmet decals:
A cool initiative: The NFL informed clubs that the 14 international pathway players on rosters can wear their home country’s flag (in addition to the US flag) on their helmets during the 2021 preseason. So you’ll see flags from Mexico, Italy, Germany, etc. on helmets next month. pic.twitter.com/7mE3Qk7qy4
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) July 29, 2021
This initiative is limited to the 2021 preseason.
The IPP’s goal is to provide international athletes the chance to compete in the NFL and potentially earn a roster spot.
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