North American ice hockey's NHL will increase its activity in the German market after announcing a strategic partnership with domestic soccer giant FC Bayern Munich and two additional regular-season games in the country.
Described as a “first-of-its-kind” multi-year partnership, the NHL and Bayern will collaborate to create fan engagement opportunities, with the alliance forged to accelerate the growth of hockey in Germany and the development of the Bundesliga side in North America.
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The move is part of the NHL’s long-term international growth strategy in Germany.
The partnership includes creating a platform for cross-sport collaboration, youth outreach, and original content development.
The NHL and Bayern will collaborate on a range of fan-focused initiatives, including digital and social media campaigns, co-branded content and merchandise opportunities, street hockey events in Munich, watch parties, matchday activations at Allianz Arena, youth programming, hospitality experiences, and business networking events.
They will additionally work together on player appearances, experiential activations, cross-promotional campaigns, and other community engagement and storytelling initiatives.
Keith Wachtel, president of NHL Business, said: “Germany continues to be one of the NHL’s most important international growth markets, and FC Bayern is among the most recognizable and respected sports brands in the world.
“By combining the NHL's passion for hockey with FC Bayern's extraordinary reach and connection to fans, we have a tremendous strategic opportunity to introduce more people to our game, deepen engagement with existing fans and create unique experiences.”
Rouven Kasper, FC Bayern board member and CMO, added: “By developing ideas together with one of the most tradition-steeped leagues in world sport, the connection of our respective regions will create unique synergies on a wide variety of levels, in sports and beyond.
“We are creating a platform that promises long-term value for both partners and sets a new benchmark in terms of what cross-sport collaborations can achieve.”
The announcement of the partnership came shortly after it was revealed that the NHL will stage regular-season games in Munich and Cologne for the first time as part of the 2027 NHL Global Series Games in Germany.
During the 2027-28 NHL season, the Boston Bruins will play two games in Munich at SAP Garden, while the Edmonton Oilers will play two games in Cologne at Lanxess Arena.
Notably, Munich native JJ Peterka plays for the Bruins, while Cologne is the native city of the Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl, one of Germany's best-ever players.
The NHL has major plans to grow its presence and exposure in Germany and has already announced two regular-season games in the upcoming 2026-27 season.
The pair of fixtures, between the Ottawa Senators (who feature German international Tim Stutzle) and the Chicago Blackhawks, will be held in Düsseldorf on December 18 and 20, and represent the first time the NHL takes multiple regular-season fixtures to Germany in the same campaign.
Indeed, the NHL and NHLPA are committing to take regular-season action to Germany for the next three years.
Only one regular-season game has taken place there so far, back in 2011 when the Buffalo Sabres faced the Los Angeles Kings in Berlin.
In total, 22 NHL games have taken place in Germany – 12 of these have been pre-season affairs, while nine have fallen fully in the offseason.
No games from the 32-team league were held in that market last year, with the most recent occasion being 2024.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said: “There is no better way to experience the speed, skill, and excitement of NHL hockey than live and in person. The National Hockey League is thrilled to bring our first-ever regular season games to the passionate fans in Munich and Cologne.
“These events represent an important step in our commitment to grow the game in Germany. By bringing more NHL games to one of Europe’s most dynamic hockey markets, we hope to continue to deepen engagement amongst our fans, partners and local communities, while at the same time creating a significant opportunity to grow the game throughout the country.”
The NHL’s long-term international growth strategy in Germany includes strategic investment in growing the game through grassroots activations, content and other fan engagement initiatives, and forging new, long-term business partnerships.
The league also operates its NHL Street Hockey school-based initiative in Germany as well as several European markets, such as Finland, Sweden, Czechia, and the UK.
Pay-TV sports heavyweight Sky Deutschland holds the primary broadcasting rights for the NHL in Germany, while global OTT platform DAZN distributes the NHL.TV streaming service in the market.
In terms of overall NHL growth across Europe, the league opened an office in Switzerland in late 2025 to expand its footprint across the continent.
