Bayern Munich’s coach Julian Nagelsmann can’t miss the appearance of NFL superstar Tom Brady in Munich. “I’ll be in the stadium hoping for a few touchdowns,” said the 35-year-old before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers met the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday (3:30 p.m.).
On Friday, NFL fan Nagelsmann exchanged views with Seahawks coach Pete Carroll and presented his fellow coach on Säbener Straße with a Bayern jersey. “It’s generally difficult to transfer things from one sport to another because the games are very different,” said Nagelsmann, who finds football “very different”. “With a lot of start-stop moments and far fewer random situations than in football.”
NFL star Brady is looking forward to German fans
The first NFL game in Germany is also a very special one for superstar Brady. “You won’t remember every game in your career, but you will remember this one,” said the 45-year-old quarterback. “All life consists of memories, this is one. It’s my first time in Germany. I’ll definitely be back,” said the seven-time Super Bowl winner.
His friend Sebastian Vollmer, a former German NFL professional, told him “that the German audience at football games is the best in the world,” Brady revealed: “I’ll be excited, and the fans will be too.”
Seahawks quarterback Smith with a cheat sheet on his forearm
Definitely forbidden in school, but a tried and tested means in the NFL: a bracelet from which the quarterbacks can read moves. The playmaker of the Seattle Seahawks, Geno Smith, also relies on the aid on the body. “I’ve worn the bracelet many times in my career – at every level. It’s just something that helps. It speeds things up,” said Smith.
And why does it need the cheat? If the coach passes on the moves – many of which consist of several words – to his quarterback via the headset, misunderstandings often occur in football due to the background noise. Each action now has a number on Smith’s note, so the 32-year-old American only has to understand it.
Munich NFL cuisine: more burgers, but the beer remains German
When it comes to catering for around 67,000 football fans, the Munich organizers rely on a German-American mix. “There are definitely more burgers than usual. On Sunday, 1,800 people are employed just for the catering,” said the Allianz Arena’s managing director, Jürgen Muth. But the beer will remain German.
Munich is hosting the first NFL game in Germany. The Bavarian state capital will share three more main round games in the world’s best football league with Frankfurt over the next three years.
