The National Football League announced on Thursday that the Kansas City Chiefs have been designated to play one of two international games in Germany during the 2023 season. The date, time and opponent for the game are being finalized and will be announced by the NFL at a later date.
"We are incredibly excited to put the Kansas City Chiefs and all of Chiefs Kingdom on the international stage with a Germany game in 2023," Chiefs President Mark Donovan said. "We've aggressively pursued this opportunity because we know how passionate German fans are about NFL football and we're committed to the international growth of the game as well as our brand. We think we'll be able to provide the right mix of opportunities for our existing Season Ticket Members and domestic fans while also creating unique experiences that will make this memorable for German fans as well."
This contest will mark the third regular season international game in franchise history. The club previously played the Detroit Lions at London's Wembley Stadium on November 1, 2015 and the Los Angeles Chargers at Mexico City's Estadio Azteca on November 18, 2019. The club is 2-0 in regular season international contests.
The Chiefs and the Hunt family have been involved in numerous international initiatives over the past three decades, investing in growing the game and its fanbase globally and helping showcase the best of the sport on the international stage. In addition to the two regular season international contests, the club has participated in four American Bowl preseason games – Berlin, West Germany (1990), Tokyo, Japan (1994 and 1998) and Monterrey, Mexico (1996).
Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt has long been a leader on the league's international efforts. Hunt sits on the NFL's International Committee and served as the committee's Chairman from 2011-18. Since 2011, the league has hosted 37 regular season games internationally, and all 32 teams have played overseas. During his time as chairman, the NFL announced a partnership with Tottenham Hotspur of the English Premier League to develop a stadium in London to host regular NFL games. The stadium opened in 2019 and is one of three English stadiums – including historic Wembley Stadium – to host American football. The league has also hosted four regular season games in Mexico since 2016 and staged its first regular season game in Germany in 2022.
The club was awarded International Home Marketing Area (IHMA) rights for Germany and Mexico in December 2021 as part of the global growth of NFL football. With its IHMA rights, the club has taken a number of steps to maximize its visibility in Germany:
- Hosted a "Draft Haus" for Day 3 of the 2022 NFL Draft, announcing a pick from a bar in Munich
- Established a six-person Advisory Board to provide market-specific subject matter expertise for continued growth
- Partnered with global sports marketing agency SPORTFIVE for international strategy, asset development and commercial sales in the German market
- Signed preseason television broadcast agreement with DAZN
- Activated during Oktoberfest in Munich
- Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt and President Mark Donovan spoke at SPOBIS, Europe's largest sports business event, held in Düsseldorf
- Participated in NFL's pilot FLAG program, providing Chiefs-branded gear and workshops to all the "Chiefs" teams
- Have the highest social media engagement amongst teams with marketing rights in Germany
- Hosted a 200-fan watch party for the Chiefs vs. Jaguars game following the inaugural Germany game in 2022 with a replica "locker room" photo opportunity that can be moved around the country
- Launched a merchandise collaboration with DefShop in November, the first of its kind between an NFL club and a local brand in Germany
As the Official Hospitality Partner of the NFL, On Location provides fans exclusive and unparalleled access to the biggest events on the NFL calendar each year. Fans can reserve their opportunity to purchase all-inclusive Chiefs-Germany ticket packages through the Official Chiefs International Game Priority Access powered by On Location by visiting www.onlocationexp.com/chiefs.
