GREEN BAY – The 2025 NFL draft will be April 24-26 in Green Bay, or one year, five months and 18 days from Monday. The Green Bay Packers and the NFL revealed the 2025 dates during a news conference at Lambeau Field.
Green Bay is the smallest market, but has the most successful team in NFL history, with 13 championships and 28 players and coaches in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“It will provide a unique backdrop (to the draft),” said Alex Brooke, NFL senior director, events business strategy. “There’s no better football destination than Titletown.”
Green Bay was named host of the 2025 draft in May, after seven years of pursuing the opportunity.
“Every year, it was ‘Green Bay wants the draft,'” said Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy. “I was really starting to wonder if we’d get it.”
Organizers expect to draw 250,000 football fans over the course of the three-day event, in addition to NFL and television network crews who will be in Green Bay for several weeks before the event. Brooke said NFL representatives and others involved in the draft will be in town monthly beginning this summer. Some planners already were in Green Bay.
The Walt Disney Co. will bring large crews from ABC and ESPN, and the NFL Network will be here, too, Brooke said.
The next big thing is getting the puzzle pieces in place, such as deciding where to put the stage, the red carpet area and back of the house area, he said.
Estimates are the draft will cost the host committee at least $7.5 million. The Green Bay Packers, who are spearheading the project, contributed $1 million to the cause, and the state approved $2 million during the last legislative session. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was in Green Bay in August to meet with sponsors and potential sponsors.
Draft sponsors, so far, include Delaware North, Kohler Co., Miron Construction, Oneida Casino, Associated Bank, Ariens Co., Bellin Health, Belmark, Bergstrom Auto, Festival Foods, Green Bay Packaging, O Snap! Pickles and Schneider National.
Murphy said the event could generate $94 million in economic benefit for the state and $20 million locally, to say nothing of the exposure it would give to the state and region. It’s going to be a three-day commercial about the benefits of Green Bay and Wisconsin, he said.
Throughout the process, the Packers emphasized their shared history with the NFL, which is one of the best stories in professional sports. The Packers are the only fan-owned team in the league and play in the oldest stadium built for football.
“It took a lot of effort and we have a lot of effort in front of us,” said Aaron Popkey, Packers director of public affairs.
Green Bay will be the 14th city ever to host the draft, which for most of its existence was held in New York City. This will be the second time the draft will be in Wisconsin. Milwaukee hosted the 1940 draft.
NFL draft sites and attendance since the event was moved from New York City in 2015:
- 2015, Chicago, 200,000
- 2016, Chicago, 225,000
- 2017, Philadelphia, 250,000
- 2018, Dallas, 200,000
- 2019, Nashville, 600,000
- 2020, virtual, because of COVID-19
- 2021, Cleveland, 160,000
- 2022, Las Vegas, 300,000
- 2023, Kansas City, 312,000
- 2024, Detroit
- 2025, Green Bay
Contact Richard Ryman at rryman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @RichRymanPG, on Instagram at @rrymanPG or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RichardRymanPG/.
