Guten tag, Chiefs Kingdom! Well, maybe we’ll be saying good morning from Germany next year. That’s because there is a good chance that the Kansas City Chiefs will be playing in Deutschland come fall 2022.
For those who may not know, the Chiefs were awarded the German market when the NFL was handing out it’s International Marketing Rights to various franchises this past year. The Chiefs were also given the marketing rights to Mexico.
Three other teams were also given marketing rights to Germany: the Panthers, Patriots, and Buccaneers. This means that there’s a good chance that two of those teams play each other in Germany next year to take advantage of the marketing rights.
Will the Chiefs be headed to play in German in 2022?
But how can we narrow it down to two possible teams before the official schedule is released? The NFL already did half the work for us, when they announced that the Buccaneers would be hosting a game in Germany during the 2022 campaign. That means that the other 3 teams are likely to play the Bucs as visitors.
https://twitter.com/NFLDeutschland/status/1498304702173179914?s=20&t=SblS2OJ-2wKTrOBR_Zwxog
We can already rule out the Patriots, who will not be on the Bucs schedule next year (although, if Tom Brady hadn’t retired, you know the NFL would have just salivated at another Patriots vs. Brady matchup in an international market). This leaves the Panthers and the Chiefs, both of whom are set to play the Bucs next year.
Of course, the Panthers are a divisional rival to the Bucs, so it’s possible that the NFL tries to highlight this rivalry. But the reality is, neither the Bucs or the Panthers are currently set to look very good. Neither have a franchise quarterback anymore, and when the NFL was looking to send Tampa Bay overseas, they probably weren’t expecting Brady to retire either.
Which means one thing: the NFL needs some star power for this matchup. Who brings more star power than one Patrick Lavon Mahomes? It’s just too obvious. The NFL would be missing out on a golden opportunity to showcase their product by not putting the best quarterback in the league on European soil.
I got to go see the Chiefs play in London back in 2015 with my grandpa, and it was incredible. Not sure yet if making it to Germany would be in the cards, but I do know this from personal experience: international games can be fun. I hope German fans of the NFL get a real treat and the NFL gives the people what they want: Buccaneers vs Chiefs in Munich.