Millions of inquiries for the NFL game in Munich: "The anticipation is huge"

Created: 03/18/2022Updated: 03/18/2022, 2:20 p.m

By: Nico-Marius Schmitz

Looking forward to the NFL game in the Allianz Arena: Jürgen Muth.

© Sampics/ Stefan Matzke

Munich – In November, a game of the National Football League (NFL) will take place in Munich for the first time.

And the anticipation for the event is huge.

Also with Jürgen Muth (57), as the managing director of the Allianz Arena reveals in an interview.

Mr. Muth, almost two years of pandemic.

How nerve-wracking was your time as managing director?

The most difficult thing about the last two years was the lack of predictability.

We always had to reckon with the fact that the specifications could change from one hour to the next.

We are now at the 18th hygiene concept.

This number alone illustrates our effort.

This shows how often the specifications have been changed and how often we have implemented them.

I can only thank all visitors who reacted so flexibly to the changes.

But I also make no secret of the fact that the time was very difficult for us economically.

In November, the NFL will bring new impetus to the Allianz Arena.

How happy were you when the Munich location was accepted?

The Allianz Arena is the home of FC Bayern Munich and a key argument in favor of the NFL was the very good relationship with FC Bayern.

The contract to host the event was also concluded accordingly between the NFL and FC Bayern Munich.

We also qualified through the major events that we have already staged.

I was very happy about the promise.

It's the first major non-soccer event that we'll host at the Allianz Arena.

I am very grateful to the City of Munich for the cooperation.

The football fanbase in Germany is huge and with so many NFL fans here, it's sure to be a great event.

When was your first contact with the NFL?

Talks have been in full swing since August last year.

The NFL is a highly professional association, comparable to UEFA, with whom we have already had a great deal of experience and worked together constructively.

I think the NFL is just as excited about the game in Germany as we are.

Was it immediately clear to you that the Allianz Arena was ready for an NFL game?

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We actually thought about it intensively at first.

Also against the background that we are a pure football stadium and the layout of an American football stadium is different.

The field is longer and narrower there.

I admit, we first measured whether the field would even fit in (laughs).

Other requirements are also not comparable to a football game.

The best example are the crew cabins, because many more team members have to be accommodated there.

We're thinking about temporary expansion options in the other rooms.

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His return to professional sports made it possible.

© Photo: DPA

What else needs to be considered?

It is important that we convert the pitch so that it can be used again quickly for our core business, football.

After the NFL game, we're re-paving the turf.

What is also new for us is that we will have mobile X-ray machines in the arena during the NFL game, for example, since an average of two X-ray procedures take place during a football game.

What about your own football affinity?

I haven't figured it out yet, but of course that's coming (laughs).

It's such a complicated set of rules.

The biggest difference to a soccer game is that, in my experience, a football game is more of an event.

The permanent concentration exclusively on the game doesn't exist that way.

The fan follows this event, but is also busy with other things like e.g.

B. busy networking.

A sauna in the Allianz Arena?

Jürgen Muth cannot and does not want to imagine that

The stadiums in America are often more like amusement parks.

Will it be possible to watch a game from the whirlpool in the Allianz Arena?

I think FC Bayern is known for its down-to-earth values.

In Helsinki I once saw a loge that was converted into a sauna.

I can't and don't want to imagine anything like that for the Allianz Arena.

A look ahead to the EM 2024, which should also be a turning point in terms of sustainability in the stadiums.

What can we imagine?

In addition to Corona, sustainability has been another important topic in our everyday work over the past two years.

At the EURO we also want to show ourselves in socio-political terms.

Among other things, we have a sustainability working group, which is staffed by the public sector at ministry level, with which we regularly consult.

It's about areas like mobility, with the aim of making them as sustainable as possible.

There is also potential for improvement in the energy concepts and waste.

We can create flagship projects that send a signal to others.

Therefore, I am very confident that we will host a sustainable European Championship 2024.

Interview: Nico Marius Schmitz

Tickets:

The demand for the NFL game in Munich is huge.

"Within the first two days there were 250,000 ticket requests for the game in Munich," said NFL Germany boss Alexander Steinfort in the "OMR Podcast".

The NFL now expects 1.2 million ticket inquiries from the 400,000 registered fans so far.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have already been chosen as the home team.

The opponent, the exact date and the price range of the tickets should then be published in May.

The NFL field is typically 120 yards (109.73 meters) long and 53 yards (48.46 meters) wide.

For comparison: the pitch in the Allianz Arena is 68 meters wide and 105 meters long.

The team squad consists of up to 53 players.

46 players may be nominated for a game