"Money is fueling it all. It's hard to disagree with that," one source said. "But the league has to be aware of what it's getting into."
There are various human-rights concerns related to the UAE.
Freedom House, an American organization that monitors freedom and democracy globally, rates people's access to
political rights and civil liberties in countries across the world. The United Arab Emirates scored an 18 out of a possible 100 on its global freedom score, a grade that comes with the label of "not free." That score was just above Venezuela at 15 but below Qatar at 25, for comparison. The United States of America scored an 83, while Mexico at 60 had the lowest current score of any country to host an NFL game.
"There are certainly people at the NFL whose eyes are wide open about the culture," said a source. "The NFL (is) not entering this lightly with the different issues and reactions people may have. [The NFL gets] treated differently even though other leagues have gone there."
Hosting a game in Abu Dhabi would also pose logistical challenges.
For a team on the USA's east coast, the flight would be about 12 hours, with a 14-hour return. Additionally, there's an eight-hour time difference.
That would be the longest flight and biggest time difference the NFL has experienced in its time staging international contests. Based on that alone, the travel would almost surely involve a bye week following the game for both teams.
