The NFL is stopping in Germany again. Superstars like legend Tom Brady and champion Patrick Mahomes are missing this time. Nevertheless, there is going to be a big party in Munich. An NFL boss also has good news for fans in Germany.
In the Hofbräuhaus, a football giant taps the beer barrel, fans stroll through the old town wearing Giants and Panthers shirts, in the Allianz Arena the football goals are replaced by goal posts: Munich is slowly getting American football fever. Two years after the German premiere, the NFL is back in Bavaria and is hoping for a similar party to the one in 2022, when quarterback legend Tom Brady did the honors.
There is no such star and fan magnet this time – the New York Giants and the Carolina Panthers are sporting before their match on Sunday (3.30 p.m./RTL and in the live ticker at ntv.de) far from the top. After the Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs and the strong Miami Dolphins played in the big game in Frankfurt last year, some fans from the USA sent malicious and malicious comments across the Atlantic this time.
More than three million ticket requests
The euphoria is unbridled, said Alexander Steinforth, the NFL’s Germany boss, before the second guest game in Munich. “The first time we could have sold three million tickets. And this time there were even more people in the queue,” he reported in an interview with the German Press Agency.
The National Football League is considered the most valuable and highest-grossing league in the world and its clubs put a lot of effort into promoting this uniquely American sport around the world. In Munich this weekend, nine NFL teams are hijacking pubs and other places, and a number of other events are planned. On Thursday evening, former German NFL professional and current RTL expert Markus Kuhn tapped beer from a wooden barrel to the applause of Giants fans and US tourists.
Will there also be a German on the field on Sunday?
The Mannheim native is looking forward to the game, even if the teams are way down in the NFL tables. “It’s total nonsense to say we’re having a bad game because there are still top athletes coming to Germany,” Kuhn told the Watson portal. As a former player and brand ambassador for the Giants, he is of course biased.
Football fans in Germany have been treated to NFL superstars over the past two years. In 2022, Super Bowl record champion Tom Brady came to Munich with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; last fall, exceptional quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Taylor Swift friend Travis Kelce with Kansas City were guests in Frankfurt, among others. New York and Carolina don’t have stars like that. Jakob Johnson traveled with the Giants as a German NFL player – it is unclear whether he will be in the matchday squad.
Regardless of the sporting value of the game, the NFL hopes that, like in 2022, it can send beautiful party pictures from the Allianz Arena to the world. Back then, the entire stadium sang along to hits like “Country Roads” and “Sweet Caroline” and even made a huge impression on experienced reporters from the USA. “It almost felt like a Super Bowl,” enthused NFL commentator Rich Eisen. “It was a party I’ll never forget.”
NFL boss promises many more Germany games
This time the organizers want to help out a bit and hired the rap and rock star Machine Gun Kelly (MGK) to perform at halftime – who, fittingly, recently released a cover version of John Denver’s “Country Roads” (“Lonely Roads”). Star violinist David Garrett and singer Florentina will play and sing the American and German national anthems before kick-off.
Football fans can also look forward to guest games in this country in the coming years. “I am very optimistic and can give all NFL fans the green light that we will continue to play here in Germany in the future,” announced NFL Germany boss Steinforth. “It was actually clear to us after the first Munich game: This has to continue.”
Contrary to reports to the contrary, it is not certain that there will be another game in Frankfurt next year. Two games took place on the Main in 2022 – one of them as a short-term replacement for a game planned in Mexico – and the NFL deal with Germany initially only included four matches. Details could be finalized at the end of the year or at the beginning of 2025. Other German cities have also expressed interest. “But we had great experiences in Frankfurt and Munich, which is why they are our first point of contact,” said Steinforth.
