Spanish newspaper reveals whether or not the Bengals will face the Dolphins in NFL's first-ever game in Spain

It's looking more and more like the Cincinnati Bengals are staying in the country for the 2025 NFL season.

The last chance Cincinnati had at playing an international game this year was flying over to Madrid, Spain to play the Miami Dolphins as the visiting team, something quarterback Joe Burrow is hoping for. 

According to a report from a Spanish newspaper, the Dolphins' opponent will not be Burrow and the Bengals.

AS.com reports that the Washington Commanders will be the team facing Miami in the league's first-ever matchup in the country. The following excerpt is loosely translated from the report published by Jaime Dávila: 

The Miami Dolphins already have a dance partner for what will be the first official NFL game in Spain. On November 16, in the 11th Week of the American Football League's competition, the Florida team will face the Washington Commanders at the Santiago Bernabéu, according to AS. The game will be officially announced this Tuesday, May 13, when the NFL releases details of all its international matches in 2025. - AS.com's Jaime Dávila

Washington is one of the nine teams the Dolphins are hosting this season, so the matchup does track with what their upcoming schedule could look like. The Commanders haven't flown overseas for a game since 2016 when they, coincidentally, played the Bengals as the road team. 

The NFL will officially announce the remaining international matchups Tuesday, and the other two games in Europe feature the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers. It's highly unlikely the Bengals will face either one of their AFC North divisional rivals in a neutral site atmosphere outside of the country.

Cincinnati hasn't played in Europe since 2019 when they played the Los Angeles Rams, and if Dávila's report is indeed correct, they'll have to wait at least one more year to make the trip.