August 21 – In a bid to grow its popularity in Germany, the National Hockey League (NHL) in the US and Canada has announced a multi-year partnership with football giant Bayern Munich, alongside four more regular season games on German soil in the coming years.

The league will stage two games featuring the Boston Bruins in Munich in 2027/28, plus two in Cologne. Those follow a Chicago Blackhawks and Ottawa Senators double header in Düsseldorf this December.

The deal took six months to negotiate with the logic, for the NHL, being about learning from the local giant. “This isn’t just a team,” said deputy commissioner Bill Daly. “This is like 60% of the people in Germany are Bayern fans.”

Thursday’s launch made for an unlikely scene, with Daly presenting a replica Stanley Cup and Bayern star Alphonso Davies joining German born NHLers Leon Draisaitl and JJ Peterka on stage.

Bayern’s chief marketing officer Rouven Kasper, drawn to the NHL’s international following, sees a two-way street. “The NHL is one of the biggest leagues in the world, the best hockey league in the world and this is our ambition: We always want to work together only with the best,” he said, citing a shared closeness with fans, and Bayern’s own designs on the US market.

The NHL isn’t stopping there, already committing more games for 2028/29 and eyeing a possible outdoor game at the 75,000 seat Allianz Arena. A league analysis flagged Germany, population 84 million, as a major growth priority.

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