The good news was announced before the game had even started: For the first time in almost two and a half years, first division sport was being played again at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium – in front of a sold-out crowd and in a magnificent atmosphere. However, there were two small hiccups in the matter: the actual hosts, Hertha BSC, were not present that Sunday afternoon, and the big city club had been living a rather miserable existence in the no-man’s land of the second Bundesliga for a long time. And: It wasn’t the local version of football that excited the crowd of 72,000, but rather the North American version, in which 22 helmeted players traverse the arena like bulldozers and try to carry egg-shaped playing equipment into the opponent’s end zone.
National Football League (NFL) in Berlin: With a league game between the Indianapolis Colts and Atlanta Falcons, the US professional league continues its expansion into Europe and South America, intended to make it better known worldwide and further increase its modest fortunes. The 32 teams already generate a total turnover of around 20 billion euros per year, which will soon be 25 billion. In addition to the German capital, the league also visited London, Dublin and São Paulo this year, and next week the Washington Commanders will meet the Miami Dolphins at Madrid’s Bernabéu Stadium.
:If the system allows fraud
Scandals in US sports show that a system of no promotion and relegation with many meaningless games when it comes to sports is prone to betting fraud. Nevertheless, the relationship between the league and the betting offices is becoming increasingly close. A dangerous symbiosis.
The roles in the game in Berlin seem to be clearly defined: here are the clear favorites Colts, currently ranked second in the league in all divisions, there are the Falcons, who have been languishing in the bottom third of the standings for weeks. What developed, however, was a rapid back and forth, a mix of great moves and big mistakes on both sides. In the end, the game-winner in his team’s hard-fought success was Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, who scored three touchdowns, including the overtime winner. Final score: 31:25.
Symptomatic of the constant ups and downs was the performance of Colts quarterback Daniel Jones, who, on one hand, scored a series of smart runs and a great 35-yard pass to wide receiver Alec Pierce for his second touchdown. However, at the same time, he was sacked seven times by the Falcons’ defense, meaning he was pulled to the ground before he could make a play. But in the end it was the 28-year-old, with a bloodied lip and a face contorted in agony, who saved his team in extra time with a brave run and clever pass.
Katarina Witt took over the coin toss – and unlike 1990, she didn’t whistle
The game has started with a performance that requires courage. Katarina Witt, a two-time Olympic champion and figure skating star from the former East Germany, took over the coin toss at the start of the game, which determined which team would strike first. Witt received this honor when the NFL played a game in Berlin for the first time in August 1990, though only as part of the preseason. Witt was booed at the time because the crowd in the west end of town thought he was a former SED sympathizer. This time things are friendlier for the now 59-year-old, perhaps because many younger viewers might not know what to do with the name Witt. Maybe not with SED either.
In general, fans: Anyone expecting champagne and event goers coming to the event will be disappointed. Many in the audience wore jerseys instead of Balenciaga, which featured not only the colors of the Colts and Falcons, but also nearly all 30 other NFL teams, from the Steelers and Packers to the 49ers and Rams to the Patriots and Chiefs. What’s more: the crowd turned out to be very knowledgeable, happy to sing and be loud – at least louder than the fans in some US stadiums, who also like to go and buy burgers, fries and refills of XXL Cola during the game. In any case, the Colts, who officially hosted in Berlin, couldn’t complain that the overseas trip had cost them home court advantage, especially since the majority of the crowd was clearly rooting for the team from Indiana.
Not only the Colts, but also NFL officials are looking to get back after this cold Sunday afternoon in Berlin. Two more games have been scheduled for 2027 and 2029. And Hertha BSC can also rejoice: not only will the grass at the Olympic Stadium be resurfaced after football matches, but the showers have been replaced for NFL visits and some of the doors in the cabin wings have been widened to 1.26 metres. Because even though some soccer fans in Germany still underestimate the pushing, running, and throwing spectacle of the US soccer nation: America definitely has bigger crosses.
