The National Football League (NFL), the professional American football league in the United States, returns to Munich's Allianz Arena in 2026 and 2028. On November 15, 2026, the Detroit Lions will face the New England Patriots.
After 2024, the NFL will return to Munich twice in the coming years: games will be held again at the Allianz Arena in 2026 and 2028. The reason for this is the growing enthusiasm for American football in Germany. Thousands of fans from Munich, Germany and across Europe will cheer on the Detroit Lions and the New England Patriots in Munich on November 15, 2026.
The City of Munich and the Free State of Bavaria will put together a huge supporting programme for both 2026 and 2028. In previous years, for example, flag football, a version of American football with limited physical contact, was introduced at 16 schools over a period of three months. A training course for teachers was also held on the new flag football pitch at Sporthaus Riem. Many parties also took place around the game in Munich city centre. NFL fan events were held in numerous Munich pubs such as the Hofbräuhaus, the Herrschaftszeiten and the Augustiner Stammhaus. Throughout the city, from Wittelsbacher Platz to SAP Garden, fans could celebrate, dance, meet players and watch the game. Information about the supporting programme and the latest news on the NFL in Munich can be found on the Touchdown Munich website.
“At the beginning, the rules of football were still secret knowledge: only those who lived near a US barracks could find out what they were by listening to the American Forces Network radio station. The first fans in Munich invited veterans from Frankfurt to teach them the game; a colonel stationed at McGraw Barracks was one of the first Cowboys coaches. Some of the players from the early days were still there in 1993 when the male Cowboys clinched their first and so far only German championship title; that final in Munich was attended by over 12,000 spectators. The women's amateur team won the title in 2005 and 2006.
In Germany, new fans were mainly attracted when the US professional league NFL became accessible through the media – in the 1980s with the introduction of cable television, and in the 1990s with the pay-TV channel Premiere. From 1995 to 2007 there was also an NFL Europe, an offshoot of the US franchise. The level of popularity was high, with some matches attracting more than 30,000 spectators, especially in Frankfurt, which is a major centre of the sport. There was no Munich team in this league however.
Since 2015, the NFL has been regularly broadcast on German television, helping American football reach a wider audience. But the sport is not just gaining a following on the couch with beer and burgers: local football clubs are especially popular among children and youngsters.
One reason for this is that in football, young people of any stature and height can get involved. There’s a lot of emphasis on team spirit: nobody’s an outsider. According to the German American Football Association (AFVD), the sport had 73,410 registered members across 512 clubs in 2024. Flag football, a version of American football with limited physical contact, is also becoming increasingly popular.
The Munich Cowboys still play in the national league and have been very successful so far in 2022, but they’ve also made headlines because they had a female Bundesliga head coach on the sidelines for the first time: Nadine Nurasyid.
Munich is also represented in European American football. The Munich Ravens have played in the European Football Alliance (EFA) since 2026 and reached the final in the league's inaugural season. The Munich Cowboys continue to compete in the German Football League (GFL), Germany's highest division. The club made headlines when Nadine Nurasyid became the first woman to serve as head coach of a men's team in the GFL. During the 2026 NFL season, the Munich native is part of the Indianapolis Colts' coaching staff.
The Detroit Lions, featuring German American star Amon-Ra St. Brown, will face the New England Patriots.
November 15, 2026, at 3:30 pm CET
Another NFL game will take place in Munich in 2028.
For the latest news and information about the NFL game in Munich can be found at www.nfl.com.
