The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will play in the NFL’s inaugural regular-season game in Munich, Germany, the league announced Monday.
The league was previously weighing up three potential German host cities — Munich, Frankfurt and Dusseldorf — with a goal to host its first games in the country no later than 2023.
The NFL will host the first game with the Buccaneers at the Allianz Arena in Munich next season, followed by Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt in 2023. The league would then return to Munich in 2024 and Frankfurt in 2025.
“We look forward to participating in the first regular-season NFL game in Munich, Germany later this fall as part of the International Series,” said Buccaneers Owner/Co-Chairman Joel Glazer in a prepared statement. “This historic game will play a crucial role in the NFL’s efforts to grow its international footprint while allowing us to directly engage NFL fans in Germany.”
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NFL to hold its first game in Germany in 2022
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There will be five NFL regular-season games played internationally next season, with three games played in London, one in Mexico and the one in Germany.
The Arizona Cardinals will return to play in Mexico City where they hosted the NFL’s first-ever regular-season game outside the United States in 2005.
The Green Bay Packers will make their first international trip, becoming the 32nd NFL team to play in London since 2007. The New Orleans Saints will play in the UK for the third time, having won on two previous occasions. The Jacksonville Jaguars previously announced that they will play a home game at Wembley Stadium in 2022.
“We are very excited to be staging five games outside the United States in 2022, and thank the clubs for their continued commitment to growing the sport internationally,” said Peter O’Reilly, NFL Executive Vice President, Club Business and League Events. “Our fans in Germany, Mexico and the UK can look forward to seeing some of the most iconic names and biggest stars in the League and enjoying an incredible series of events.”
Next season’s International Series will mark the first time that the NFL has returned to Germany since it hosted five preseason games between 1990 and 1994.
The country also had a number of host cities for teams in the NFL’s overseas competitions (the World League of American Football, NFL Europe and NFL Europa) between 1991 and 2007, though Munich was never involved in that period.
Last season, the NFL resumed its annual international series after coronavirus-related travel restrictions caused the 2020 series to be cancelled. A total of two games were held in at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London in October — the Atlanta Falcons beating the New York Jets, followed by the Jaguars’ victory over the Miami Dolphins a week later. The latter was the NFL’s 30th game held in London since the series began in 2007.
NFL owners approved a resolution last year to guarantee four international games per season starting in 2022, in the United Kingdom, Mexico and Germany. The resolution also stated that all 32 NFL teams would be mandated to play overseas at least once every eight years.
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