BERLIN — Berlin’s city government launched an official bid campaign on Tuesday to host NFL games over a five-year period starting next year.
Berlin would be the third German city to host regular-season games after Munich, which hosted the first game in 2022 and the Carolina Panthers’ 20-17 overtime win over the New York Giants on Sunday, and Frankfurt last year.
Games would be held at the Olympiastadion, which hosted NFL exhibition games in the 1990s and has a capacity of more than 74,000. It’s previously hosted the finals of the men’s soccer World Cup in 2006 and European Championship this year.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell indicated Saturday that the NFL was working “very hard” to bring the league to the German capital, but “that does not mean we’re not going to be back in Frankfurt and Munich.”
The Berlin city government said in a statement it was hoping for “significant economic added value” from hosting NFL games and indicated it would seek to popularize flag football in schools ahead of its addition to the Olympic program in Los Angeles in 2028.
Berlin wasn’t one of the German cities that initially bid to host regular-season games when the NFL first eyed expanding its international schedule to Germany. The three finalists selected in 2021 were Frankfurt, Munich and Dusseldorf, which has not hosted a game.
NFL team owners voted in December to authorize the league to host eight games internationally each season. There were five this season in London, Munich and Sao Paulo.
One new destination for next year is already confirmed. The league is heading to Spain for the first time with a game in Madrid.