Great British Chiefs Show on Tour in Germany: Day 3

After a heavy couple of days packed with activities as we awaited Sunday’s Kansas City Chiefs game against the Miami Dolphins, Brad and I decided to take it easy — especially with the big game looming.

Instead of hitting a bar early — something we would typically do when away — we opted for going for a stroll through the city. My step counter had already reached 35,000 in the last two days, so why not add a few more?

Anyone staying around the main train station will know that the area around it isn’t exactly the most welcoming. Let's say that there are certainly some characters. But once you move a couple of hundred yards away from it, you arrive in a bustling, metropolitan city.

If you enjoy shopping, eating and drinking — or even architecture — then Frankfurt has something for you.

As we walked towards the city’s centre, we noticed that there were more people walking around in NFL jerseys than we’d recently seen — which is incredible, considering how many Kansas City fans are in town. Remember: this will be a Chiefs home game.

The reason for the build-up in fans was due to the NFL fan experience which had taken over central Frankfurt.

Games, stalls and displays were all available. Locals going about their business accidentally found themselves involved in a football festival. The NFL would have almost certainly gained some new fans yesterday.

The only gripe I have with these events is the queuing. The Brits are known for their patience and their love of a good queue. But me? I break the stereotype in that regard. I would have loved to be able to show off my inner Tyler Thigpen to Frankfurt. But there was no way I was waiting in line for an hour or more to do so.

We headed back to the hotel to have a rest after our long walk and recharge the batteries in preparation for the next party ahead: the Das Kingdom party was being hosted by our German friends Daniel Jensen and Marius Wimmler.

After leaving the hotel we bumped into more Chiefs fans who were sitting outside in the lashing rain. They weren’t totally crazy, though. They were sitting under a huge collection of parasols in one of the town squares. We sank a few beers and talked about the differences between the London and Frankfurt international series’ games.

Luckily, as it was time to head to the party, the rain stopped as we got to the gates of the Das Kingdom party. The sound of music playing inside was inviting — and the sheer number of Chiefs fans in attendance was staggering. Fans from all walks of life and different corners of the world, all joining together to sing songs, talk about the Chiefs — and of course, do the “chop” at every moment.

If you remember NFL Europe, you’ll recall that the most successful team of that era was the Frankfurt Galaxy. That team still exists — it now plays in the European Football League (ELF) — and it was also hosting the Das Kingdom event. It was great to see they had new merchandise, so fans could grab a jersey or a cap.

The organisers — Daniel and Marius — laid on a fantastic party which catered to everyone at the event. Congratulations to them and their co-hosts for welcoming travelling Chiefs fans — and introducing us all to the German home of Chiefs Kingdom.

Now on to the main event!