NFL to play first regular-season game in Berlin

A crowd of 70,132 attended the Carolina Panthers’ overtime win against the New York Giants at Munich’s Allianz Arena last month [Reuters]

The NFL will play its first regular-season game in Berlin in 2025, making it five confirmed international games for next season.

The game will be staged at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium and will be the fifth to be played in Germany since the NFL’s international series expanded from the UK to mainland Europe in 2022.

The NFL’s initial commitment to Germany included games in Munich and Frankfurt – one game was held in Munich in 2022 and 2024, with two in Frankfurt in 2023.

But the league has now made a “multi-year commitment” to playing games in the German capital.

Berlin’s Olympic Stadium hosted five pre-season games from 1990-1994 and hosted Berlin Thunder of the now-defunct NFL Europe from 2003 to 2007.

“Germany has a rich tradition of American football and the NFL has a deep history with the city of Berlin,” said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

The NFL has already confirmed it will play a game in Spain for the first time next year – at Real Madrid’s Bernabeu stadium – and there will again be three games in London.

The current season began with the NFL’s first game in Brazil and Goodell has said the league is “shooting for” eight international games in 2025, with Brazil, Mexico and Ireland potential hosts for the other three games.

The NFL estimates it now has almost 20 million fans in Germany and, as part of the new partnership, will work with local authorities to develop flag football, which will make its Olympic debut at the Los Angeles Games in 2028.

“This long-term partnership with the NFL will continue to boost Berlin as a global sports metropolis, as well as excite fans at the Olympic Stadium,” said Iris Spranger, Berlin’s senator for the interior and sports.

“The 2025 NFL Berlin game means worldwide visibility, numerous international guests, increased tourism and high economic value across the city.”

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-play-first-regular-season-190025359.html

Author : BBC

Publish date : 2024-12-11 19:00:00

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