鈥楴ow, it鈥檚 getting huge.鈥� How the NFL is making (lots of) fans overseas.
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Mark Sappenfield Senior global correspondent
| Berlin
On a crisp autumn evening in Berlin, you can just about see the National Football League鈥檚 wildest dream coming true.
Ahead of Sunday鈥檚 game in Berlin鈥檚 historic Olympic Stadium, the Indianapolis Colts have taken over Potsdam Square, with a deejay, a fan shop, and all manner of football-themed games. The event is perhaps not as crowded as the team might have wished, and fans at the field-goal-kicking station are noticeably more confident than those at the pass-catching station. But there is no shortage of jackets and scarves decorated with the Colts鈥� horseshoe logo, and excitement is in the air.
Sunday鈥檚 game against the Atlanta Falcons will be the sixth NFL game played abroad this season; one more will be played next weekend in Madrid.
Why We Wrote This
The Indianapolis Colts are playing the Atlanta Falcons Sunday 鈥� in Berlin. Fans sporting the Colts鈥� horseshoe have flown in from as far away as Brazil, a sign of how big U.S. football is becoming overseas.
The festivities in Berlin show how far the sport has come internationally 鈥� and how far it still has to go. For the world鈥檚 wealthiest sports league, with revenue of more than $20 billion annually, that looks a lot like opportunity. If the NFL expands its regular-season schedule from 17 to 18 games, Commissioner Roger Goodell would like an international game every week.
鈥淭hey鈥檒l push the envelope as far as they can,鈥� says Rick Ridall, a professor at Temple University鈥檚 School of Sport, Tourism, and Hospitality management who previously worked for the Philadelphia Eagles.
鈥淭here鈥檚 not a line in the sand,鈥� he adds. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why they鈥檙e being so aggressive. They don鈥檛 see a wall they鈥檙e hitting yet.鈥�
Instead, they see fans such as Lucas Coppi. He is wearing a camouflage Colts shirt and team scarf, and he has just flown in from Brazil to watch the game.
This is the hope 鈥� that international games make the sport 鈥渟ticky.鈥� New fans become attached to the sport, and superfans are drawn from around the world. In Potsdam Square, the Fan Zone has the feeling of a reunion, with Colts fans from across the globe hailing one another as old friends.
Mr. Coppi is in conversation with the Colts鈥� 鈥淚nternational Fan of the Year鈥� from 2023, as well as the one from 2024. They are both German. To win, Christoph M枚rchel (Mr. 2023) set up watch parties, helped arrange travel to games in the United States, and supported the Colts鈥� game in Frankfurt that year.
His award does not account for the five weeks he spent in Indiana to watch Colts games. The woman who hosted him in Indiana, who he now calls his 鈥淎merican mom,鈥� will be arriving in Berlin to watch Sunday鈥檚 game. Mr. M枚rchel smiles at the prospect of them watching the Colts in his home country.
Around the Fan Zone, the backstories are all different. Mr. M枚rchel turned on the television in 2008 to witness the brilliance of then-Colts quarterback Peyton Manning. That was enough. Conni Stier says her son tried every sport but was always too big 鈥� until he found American football.
鈥淚 like football because every child has a chance to play,鈥� she says. 鈥淚n football, you need everyone.鈥�
She is now a board member for the Potsdam Royals, who last month were crowned champions of the German Football League in front of 22,000 spectators in Dresden.
Germany is 鈥渙ne of the most robust environments for football in the world,鈥� says Andy Fuller, managing director of the International Federation of American Football. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a really special place for Germany at the heart of the European football community.鈥�
It began with American service members stationed in Germany during the Cold War, such as Gerry 鈥淏oss鈥� Hogg. He had offers to play at colleges in Texas but came to Berlin in 1978 鈥� first as a soldier, then a football missionary. He鈥檚 been here ever since.
The player turned coach helped build Berlin Adler into one of Germany鈥檚 most storied football teams.
鈥淚鈥檓 proud of what Germans have done,鈥� says Mr. Hogg. 鈥淭he German Football League is the foundation of American football here.鈥�
To Christoph Sonka, president of Adler, Sunday鈥檚 game feels like football coming home. 鈥淔or us, it鈥檚 a huge thing. Berlin is the capital of American football in Germany.鈥�
But the arrow is pointing up beyond Germany. When the International Federation of American Football was founded in 1998, it included about 20 countries. Now, 78 nations have American football federations. That number should reach 100 within a few years, says Mr. Fuller.
Flag football is the game changer. No longer do players need expensive equipment or a penchant for violence. For the first time, flag football will feature at the 2028 Summer Olympics.
Not long before two Colts legends take the stage at the Berlin Fan Zone, up come the boys and girls of the Wolves, a local flag football team that won a regional championship. Decked out in full gear, they are advertisements as much as honorees.
Flag football creates new openings for the sport worldwide, and the NFL is barreling through them like a running back scenting the end zone.
International games are a crucial lever, and not just the games themselves. 鈥淭here鈥檚 lots happening [including camps], that are having a positive effect,鈥� says Mr. Sonka.
But the games are the showpiece. Mr. Coppi says that when he first became an NFL fan, 鈥渘o one knew about it鈥� in Brazil. His YouTube channel for discussing all things football had about 1,000 subscribers. Then, the NFL played its first game in Brazil in 2024. He now has 20,000 subscribers.
This year, the NFL played its second game in Brazil. Says Mr. Coppi: 鈥淣ow, it鈥檚 getting huge.鈥�
