Updates

The NFL confirmed that Munich has been chosen to host the first regular-season game in Germany during the 2022 season.

Following a competitive application process, the home of the Bundesliga champions, FC Bayern Munich Stadium was selected as the venue for two of the four International Series games to be played in Germany over the next four years. Frankfurt Stadium will also host two games.

"We are very pleased to welcome Munich and Frankfurt to the NFL family and are excited to reward our fans in Germany for their passion by bringing them the spectacle of regular-season NFL football," said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. "We look forward to staging our first game in Germany at FC Bayern Munich's fantastic stadium later this year and to exploring areas of broader collaboration with the Bundesliga."

The game in Munich will be one of five international games staged by the NFL in 2022, including one in Mexico and three in the UK – two at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and a Jacksonville Jaguars home game at Wembley Stadium. Home teams for international games will be announced in the coming weeks, with dates and matchups to be confirmed in conjunction with the 2022 NFL schedule announcement later this year.

"We have been collaborating with the NFL since 2014 when we opened our US office," said Oliver Kahn, CEO of FC Bayern Munich. "Our ambition was to reach and engage fans in each other's respective home countries. We are delighted to take this next step in our long-term partnership to host a regular-season NFL game at our home stadium."

The selection process for NFL games in Germany began in 2021 with initial expressions of interest from nine cities, after which Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich were invited to participate in a full evaluation of the opportunities offered by each city. The partnerships among the NFL, Munich and Frankfurt include a joint commitment to deliver fan engagement activities, community participation programs and other NFL initiatives.

"We are looking forward to partnerships with Munich and Frankfurt that will extend beyond the games and help us to deliver accelerated growth in Germany," said Brett Gosper, NFL Head of Europe and UK. "The strong interest we received underlined what a fantastic opportunity regular-season games offer for a host, ranging from 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.

The staging of regular-season games is part of the NFL's growing commitment to Germany. The league has recently appointed Alexander Steinforth as its dedicated general manager for the territory and is committed to establishing a permanent headquarters in the country. It has also committed to investing in grassroots and community programs in Germany.

In December 2021, the NFL announced that four NFL teams – Carolina Panthers, Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – have been granted access to Germany for marketing, fan engagement and commercialization as part of its International Home Marketing Areas (IHMA) initiative.

The NFL has enjoyed several strong years of fan growth in Germany, where it now has 19 million fans. Weekly NFL television viewership on partners ProSieben and DAZN has grown by more than 20% annually since 2017, and millions of fans tuned in for Super Bowl LV last February, making it the third consecutive season of record German Super Bowl viewership. Germany is a leading market outside North America for NFL Shop sales, fantasy football participation and sales of the Madden NFL video game.

A new survey by AGF Videoforschung found that American football has become the second-most popular television sport in Germany, with one in three people having watched in the past year.

To receive more information about the first NFL regular-season game in Munich, visit: www.nfl.com/munich