Laura Marthe Marie – Gabriella Maitre Deunf y Valeria Morillo
The European University of Madrid hosted a talk on the birth of NFL in Spain, with 3 of the biggest fans of American football, in honor of the communication week.
On November 16th, 2025 the Bernabeu Stadium became host for the Miami Dolphins VS the Washington Commanders game. This became the first ever National Football League game to be played in Spain, and it is only the beginning. Over the past years, American football has managed to make its way across Europe and Gonzalo Perez, President of Spanish-American Football Association, and Daniel Devesa Guade, Ex-player came to Universidad Europea to tell us why:
Throughout history, American and traditional football have been two different ends that never met, and that sparked debates all over the world ‘Which one is better?’ ‘Is it called football or soccer?’ For the most part, American football was not only a foreign concept to the European audience, but it also came with superstitions like the sport being too aggressive and bellicose. “After an American football game ends, it looks like the players have come back from a war. Because of how the sport has evolved, it’s becoming less violent, but the football I used to play was much more violent than what you see now. In the 90’s it was insanely dangerous —now players are more technical and more disciplined, with more rules against putting your opponent in danger.’’- Daniel Devesa guarde, ex-player.
This caused limitations in their viewership, as it isolated them in the American continent.
Gonzalo Perez, who is president of the FMFA claims that this is a thing of the past, the emblematic Bernabeu was filled with ecstatic fans who witnessed a very different kind of football for the first time. This is evidence that American Football has now gone worldwide, with Spain being the first destination.
“It was insane to witness the entire crowd of 80,000 singing along to the lyrics of ‘American Pie’, and to witness the first touchdown, I felt like a little kid again.”-Gonzalo Perez, FAFM President.
The 2026 Super Bowl set the bar high by inviting super stars like Bad Bunny, Ricky Martin and Lady Gaga to sing for the halftime show time . The 8th of February marked history as the United States were struggling with the strict policy of Ice. By inviting Bad Bunny to sing for the Super Bowl, not only the NFL stood up against racism, they also united the nations of Latina America to celebrate for 15 precious minutes.
But, what is there to understand behind the famous NFL’s halftime shows ?
The half time show is one of the most strategical and cultural shows of the history of American football. Every year, the entire world waits for these precious 15 minutes to happen. This unites football fans and fans of the singers who perform.
One of today’s special guest at the European University of Madrid, Daniel Devesa Guarde, ex-american football player, talked us through the big economic impact of NFL coming to Europe, furthermore, in Spain.
David Devesa explained to us that Madrid, being the capital of Spain, was a smart choice for American football to expand. The NFL game between the Washington Commanders and the Miami Dolphins was an economical success. More than 6 million of spectators came from around the world to see THE game of the year, meaning millions of them booked hotel rooms, others came by car and paid parkings spots and highway taxes, others booked flight tickets, boosting the economy, not only of Madrid but of the entire country.
The ex-football player explains to us that before, watching an NFL on TV was the only thing that would procure him joy, now, he can take the metro and in 8 stops, he’s in The Bernabeu Stadium, watching the game, as happy as ever. David says that, based on the statistics, people would rather watch American football than tradicional football, even in Spain, which highlights the depth of this sport.
«American football is a wonderful addiction—once it gets into you, it’s amazing… there’s nothing that can compete with American futbol, one that knows about football, nether gets out of the addiction.» -Diego Garcia, professor at UEM, claims that in order to enjoy watching an NFL game, one must learn the rules and pay attention to the way they play, since it is so different from traditional football, it can look very contrasting to an average watcher. All rules differentiate in both sports, starting from the fact that American football is primarily played using hands to catch the ball, whereas in ‘soccer’ this is the number one thing you are prohibited to do. It seems marvelous to live in a day and age where one can be a fan of two sports that are so different, and still have the chance to enjoy them at the same time. This is one of the many virtues of the upcoming calendar of the NFL in spanish territory.
«In any sport, you lose more than you win, and you have to be mentally prepared to overcome frustration, and its the exact same thing in life», says the president of the FMFA (federación madrileña de futbol americano). Football is a passion because it gives us true values, «I’m a lot like Batman» says Diego Garcia, «because I fall and I learn to get up constantly».