Germany: NFL will come to Berlin's Olympic stadium

21.11.2024 16:21 source: StadiumDB.com; author: Jakub Ducki

The German capital can now officially get ready for a sporting event of global proportions. From 2025 onwards, Berlin will host NFL American football league games at Olympiastadion for at least four years.

Berlin's football plans

The sporting metropolis of Berlin will be bidding to host NFL games in the long term - emphasised Senator for Sport Iris Spranger. The announcement of the decision by the Berlin Senate marks the official submission of the city and Olympiastadion as a candidate to host American football matches from 2025 to 2029. Spranger, who was also a participant in the recent NFL game in Munich, expects the negotiations to conclude with the signing of the agreement within a few weeks.

As part of the partnership, Berlin intends to host three matches in four years. Allianz Arena in Munich and Waldstadion in Frankfurt, previous hosts of NFL games in Germany, will also remain part of the rotation. NFL league chief Roger Goodell has already spoken openly about the plans for Berlin during the Munich meeting.

Although new to many NFL fans in Germany, Berlin has already had the opportunity to host American football. In the 1990s, five pre-season games of NFL teams were held here, but interest in the sport on the scale it is today was much smaller then.

Investment and profit for German capital

The plan to host NFL games in Berlin also involves significant investment in the event itself. The city intends to allocate as much as €12.5 million for this purpose . Spranger pointed to the tangible benefits of the matches in Munich and Frankfurt, generating €70 million and €110 million in added value respectively. Berlin will benefit not in terms of tourism and economics. The NFL has a unique global TV presence with broadcasts in some 220 countries - the senator stressed.

The city authorities expect interest in NFL games to be as huge as the New York Giants meeting with the Carolina Panthers in Munich, which sold out in a few hours. The new sporting events are also expected to boost tourism and raise the city's profile. Berlin already attracts millions of tourists a year and the cooperation with the NFL is expected to increase this number even further.