GREEN BAY (NBC 26) — The NFL Draft might be years away for the people of Green Bay, but the community is already asking how it will affect them and what they they can do to get involved.
NBC 26 Today's MacLeod Hageman talked with Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy about what the draft means to Green Bay and Wisconsin.
Preparations are already underway at Lambeau, the Resch and Titletown ahead of 2025, and we're asking the questions everyone wants answered.
"One of the cool things about this event is that these guys are drafted into a team, you're literally seeing their life change in a moment. It's really a cool event, and the idea that we can bring that to our residents and to the people of Wisconsin? Wow, it's special day," Discover Green Bay President and CEO Brad Toll said.
Toll said he was honestly at a loss for words when he first learned about the 2025 NFL Draft coming to town.
"I don't even know if you can put it into one word or a a couple words. Excitement? And relief? You know, we've been at it for so many years, and we really knew this was going to be an awesome event," Toll said.
Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy said he's confident the community can do it.
"It's no question. It's going to be a challenge, and we're going to have a lot of work to do in the next few years, but I think it's really going to be special, not only for Green Bay, but for the whole state," Murphy said.
Murphy admits the community has their work cut out, but he's excited to see it come together.
"Just the amount of work that has to be done and the infrastructure. We'll work closely with the league. Obviously a decision has to be made as to where is the actual stage for the draft, and we'll kind of work through it with them for that," Murphy said.
With a lot of unknowns remaining about the exact location of events and how the community will be able to handle the demand, Murphy and Toll agree about one thing.
"For people in Green Bay and for people throughout the state of Wisconsin, to be able to experience this, it's going to be so cool. We are so proud that we'll be able to bring this to our community," Toll said.
NBC 26 should have a better idea of what to expect int he coming months leading up to the big day, and we'll be following the latest developments every step of the way.
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Following the announcement that Green Bay will host the 2025 NFL Draft, the Green Bay Packers, along with Green Bay city tourism officials, provided further details surrounding Green Bay's selection.
During spring meetings, the NFL announced on Monday that Green Bay will be host to the 2025 NFL Draft.
The draft and other related activities are set to take place in and around Lambeau Filed and Titletown. Predicted to have visitors in the hundreds of thousands, the draft will be the largest event ever held in Green Bay.
"The Draft has become our biggest offseason event hosted in different cities with spectacular locations across the country, and we are excited to work with the Packers and Discover Green Bay to bring the 2025 NFL Draft to Green Bay and iconic Lambeau field," said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. "With the help of numerous local partners on the ground, our prospects and fans will be treated to an incredible week-long experience that shows off the city of Green Bay and the state of Wisconsin."
The 2023 draft in Kansas City held last month saw over 312,000 fans and had more than 54 million viewers over the three-day event.
Next year’s draft will take place from April 25-27 in Detroit.
