The National Football League has confirmed that three cities are currently undergoing discussions in hosting regular-season games in Germany.
The organisation is looking to find ‘the most suitable partner city’ for a possible expansion of the International Series into Germany. Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich have been invited to proceed to the ‘candidate phase’ of the process.
“Regular-season games are a key part of continuing the development of our German fan base by creating more excitement for the sport and more connectivity with fans and communities,” commented Brett Gosper, NFL Head of Europe and UK.
The three cities will now participate in ‘deeper conversations’ about the staging of games in Germany. Starting in 2022, there will be at least four games played internationally every season and each NFL team will take a turn to host an international contest once every eight seasons.
“The strong interest we have received from German cities underlines what a fantastic opportunity this is for a host, ranging from the significant economic benefits and global exposure to the chance to become a hub for the growth of the NFL’s fan engagement, community and grassroots activities,” Gosper added.
“As well as identifying a stadium that is fully capable of handling the logistics of an NFL game, we want to work with a host consortium that comprises local and regional government, stadium ownership, local stakeholders and potential commercial partners.”
The NFL stated that it now has 19 million fans in the country, and weekly NFL television viewership on partners ProSieben and DAZN has grown by more than 20 percent annually since 2017.
The NFL has staged 29 games in London since 2007 and the news comes ahead of its 30th game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday 17 October.
