senior writer
Growing up in Lagos, Nigeria, Hagai Chisom Ndubuisi never thought of becoming a soccer player. He played soccer and basketball like the rest of his classmates… until he discovered the NFL through YouTube.
“I didn't know anything about soccer. I grew up playing soccer and basketball,” Ndubuisi said this week. “My first video about the NFL became the biggest hit. I was surprised by it.”
He spent the next few years teaching himself through YouTube, attracting the attention of local scouts, enrolling in a football academy in Ghana, and winning an invitation to the international combine in London. Thousands of miles, years, and many questions and doubts later, the 6-foot-6, 298-pound Ndubuisi is now a member of the Washington Commanders and the latest beneficiary of the NFL's International Player Pathway Program. It becomes.
The NFL has spent the better part of the last decade traversing the globe, playing games and building fan alliances with countries around the world. The league is also active in attracting the world to the NFL, scouting potential players from athletes around the world. Since 2017, the NFL's International Player Pathway has become the most effective route for international athletes (some of whom, like Ndubuisi, may have only recently learned of the NFL) to reach the league. It has functioned as
Since the program's inception, 37 international players have signed contracts with NFL teams. Approximately 20 players are currently under contract, with five on current NFL rosters. The odds are long, but the addition of a new international roster spot in 2024 makes it a little more likely that the NFL will one day host a version of Shohei Ohtani or Nikola Jokic.
Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata is a product of the NFL's International Player Pathway Program. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)
How the NFL finds international talent
Patrick Murtagh is a veteran of Australian rules football, the NFL game's chaotic cousin. He played for the Gold Coast Suns for three years. Upon his release, he turned his attention to the IPP, despite the NFL still having virtually no cultural footprint in Australia.
“I thought, why not?” Murtagh says. “Is one door closed? Let's open another one.”
The NFL is a dream opportunity for Murtagh, who grew up trying to explain Peyton Manning and the Broncos to his father. His background in Australian rules football, where the game is always in motion and every catch is contested, makes him an ideal tight end candidate.
“None of it is easy, of course,” he said of the football version switch. “But you go from running, running, running 18 kilometers a game to just putting on pads and running a few kilometers.”
Murtagh was a well-known player thanks to his AFL career. Many other potential players remain virtually anonymous due to the vast scope of their international recruitment. Within the United States, football recruitment follows a standard methodology. Recruiters tap into networks of high school coaches and brokers to target future stars and unearth diamonds. But if your recruiting area is “global,” you'll need to be a little more creative in finding talent.
