Eintracht Frankfurt Launches Ambitious 2025 U.S. Pre-Season Tour, Strengthening American Ties

By Sfiso Masuku    On 30 Jul, 2025    Comments(0)

Eintracht Frankfurt Launches Ambitious 2025 U.S. Pre-Season Tour, Strengthening American Ties

Eintracht Frankfurt's 2025 U.S. Tour: Taking American Ambitions Up a Notch

When it comes to pushing boundaries in European football, Eintracht Frankfurt isn’t just talking the talk. The club is gearing up for another U.S. pre-season tour next summer, set from July 22 to August 3, marking their second straight year training and competing Stateside. For old-school fans, this isn’t just another overseas promo trip – it’s part of a tradition that kicked off more than 70 years ago, and it’s picking up steam in the modern era.

Frankfurt’s 2025 schedule features a handy mix of vibes and serious business. They’ll set up base in Louisville, Kentucky, calling the Lynn Family Sports Vision & Training Center home. The facilities? Pretty much top of the line, giving players everything they need for intensive early-season prep. And the matches? There are three: a test against Premier League staple Aston Villa, a clash with Louisville City on July 29, and a showdown with MLS side Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park on August 2. By holding these games back-to-back in different American cities, Frankfurt’s making sure they remain at the heart of Bundesliga internationalization efforts.

Why Louisville and Philadelphia? And Why Now?

Why Louisville and Philadelphia? And Why Now?

Plenty of German clubs flirt with the idea of U.S. tours. So why does Eintracht Frankfurt keep going back? Sporting director Markus Krösche summed it up: quality facilities and a clear boost in camaraderie. Last summer, he saw firsthand the momentum such camps generate, saying that groundwork in Louisville helped the squad launch strong when the Bundesliga whistle blew. Timmo Hardung, a key figure on the team’s staff, praised Louisville’s hospitality and openness, which made the club feel right at home in a new country.

But there’s a deeper strategy at play here. It’s not just about training or getting players fit in shiny gyms. The Bundesliga itself has its sights set on a bigger American footprint. The league’s organizing body, the DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga, is backing these tours as a way to weave German football into the fabric of U.S. sports culture. The presence of a New York Eintracht office, plus 13 official American fan clubs, proves this isn’t a new experiment – it’s a campaign years in the making.

The bonds aren’t just financial or about fan numbers. Back in 1954, Eintracht’s first U.S. tour became a lifeline for their stadium reconstruction. Those matches pulled in $50,000, no small sum for the era, and cemented a tradition of goodwill and exchange between German and American football circles. Today, the club leans into the motto "Building Bridges," treating every American summer not just as training, but as a way to connect with new fans and old friends at the same time.

For local fans in Kentucky and Philadelphia, these camps offer a rare shot at watching top European clubs up close. For players, it’s a welcome change of scenery that doubles as a critical bonding exercise ahead of a long European season. And for Eintracht Frankfurt, every touch on American soil strengthens both the team and its deep-rooted transatlantic ties.