American football’s NFL has announced that the German capital of Berlin will host an international regular season game during the league’s 2025 campaign.
The NFL has committed to staging games in Berlin over multiple years at the city’s Olympiastadion and will also collaborate with the Berlin Senate to develop flag football in the city.
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The Olympiastadion in Berlin, home of second-tier German soccer side Hertha Berlin, has a capacity of 74,475, outstripping even Munich’s Allianz Arena which has hosted games in two of the last three NFL seasons, with Frankfurt hosting a pair also.
This announcement means seven international games are firmly scheduled for 2025 out of a possible allocation of eight – in in the future, that number could further rise to 16.
Speaking on the announcement, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell stated: “Germany has a rich tradition of American football, and the NFL has a deep history with the city of Berlin.
"We first held a preseason game at the Olympic Stadium 34 years ago, before it was home to NFL Europe's Berlin Thunder in the early 2000s. Now, with almost 20 million NFL fans in Germany, we'll make a historic return to the city playing a regular-season game for the first time as we open the next chapter in our relationship with Berlin."
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By GlobalDataGoodell hinted at the announcement of a Berlin game back in November in the wake of the 2024 Munich Game, which saw the New York Giants fall to the Carolina Panthers in overtime.
The latest fixture was indicative of not just the fervor for NFL in the German market, but also the growing bond between the league’s operations and Germany’s top-tier Bundesliga soccer competition.
Iris Spranger, Berlin senator for the interior and sports, added: “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.
"The 2025 NFL Berlin game means worldwide visibility, numerous international guests, increased tourism and high economic value across the city. We're looking forward to an incredible game and an ongoing successful partnership with the league, as we continue to strengthen the presence of American football throughout the state."
NFL international games next year are also confirmed for London and Madrid.
