When the New England Patriots face the Detroit Lions in Munich, two German fans named Tobias Weinberger and Daniel Stephani will be on a campsite outside the city rather than inside the Allianz Arena. The pair traveled to the game in a caravan without tickets, embodying a growing fan culture that treats the NFL’s international expansion primarily as a massive reunion rather than a standard sports broadcast.
Journey to Munich
The friendship between Weinberger, who lives in Witten, and Stephani, who lives in Neuss, began around the time quarterback Tom Brady won his sixth and final Super Bowl with the New England Patriots in February 2019. At the time, they barely knew each other. Neither had many people in their personal circles who followed American football, leading Stephani to search for local supporters online.
He discovered Patriotsarmy.NRW, a fan club that celebrated its tenth anniversary this year, and drove to Essen in early 2019 to meet fellow enthusiasts. There he connected with Weinberger, who had joined the group around the same period.
What started as a shared frustration of watching games alone at home turned into a close friendship that extends well beyond football, including trips to the cinema and sailing together on the IJsselmeer.
Their trip to Munich began at 3 a.m. on Saturday morning with a caravan journey from North Rhine-Westphalia to a local campsite. From there, they planned to head into a city center dominated by NFL events and thousands of traveling supporters.
Official gatherings included the team-designated Patriots house at the pub Herrschaftszeiten and a fan party at the Augustiner Stammhaus. On Sunday morning, German Patriots fans organized a pre-match meetup at the ArenaTreff near the Allianz Arena, bringing together supporters from across the country before kickoff.
Weinberger and Stephani Skip Match Tickets Due to Long Queues
Despite being dedicated followers of the franchise, Weinberger and Stephani decided against purchasing match tickets. When tickets initially went on sale, both found themselves placed in a virtual queue with a queue number reaching the seven-figure range. Although subsequent options became available through their fan club network, the pair chose to pass on those seats so other members could attend.
Regular ticket prices for the fixture started at 83,59 euros for seats in two smaller sections of the stadium, while other tiers ranged from over 126 euros up to 413,75 euros. Weinberger explained the decision regarding the cost: “The prices that were partly called for tickets go a bit against the priorities of a family man,” he said.
Rather than paying those sums, they coordinated their plans in advance. “We talked to each other beforehand and said, if you don’t go into the stadium, then I won’t go either—we stick together there,” Weinberger said.
Football Is Family
Instead of entering the stadium, Weinberger and Stephani planned to spend kickoff among other ticketless supporters at the ArenaTreff. There, they expected to meet a large group of Detroit Lions fans who had reserved space for several hundred attendees.
The dynamic mirrors their experience in Berlin the previous year, where they watched a matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and the Indianapolis Colts alongside fans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Friendly banter took place during those gatherings, but the overarching atmosphere remained welcoming regardless of team colors.
The expansion of the NFL into Europe relies heavily on commercial motives, as the league seeks global audiences to sustain growth outside the United States. This season features a record nine international games, with league commissioner Roger Goodell frequently discussing the possibility of a permanent European franchise or hosting a Super Bowl abroad.
Yet for supporters like Weinberger and Stephani, the exact score or the presence of their favorite team on the field is secondary. They make the journey to meet friends and celebrate a shared interest under the movement’s familiar motto: “Football is family.”
The pair planned to pack up their caravan on Monday morning to head back to North Rhine-Westphalia, hoping for a Patriots victory on the journey home but prioritizing the community experience above all else.
