The annual Super Bowl, the championship game of the U.S. National Football League (NFL), fills the coffers and empties the beverage shelves in supermarkets. Many fans in Europe are also eagerly following the action. Benedikt Mons, who just graduated from Steinmühle Boarding School with his high school diploma in hand, remains one of the biggest fans. His goal: to play in the NFL himself one day.
First Contact as an Eighth-Grader
It’s not just a pipe dream. Benedikt has a plan, and he’s sticking to it. After joining Steinmühle in eighth grade, a classmate took him to a football practice. The sport isn’t exactly gentle. But that didn’t stop him from continuing to train.
Important Companions
Benedikt played more and more often and made the U18 Hesse select team. He connected with players from Bad Homburg, joined the Sentinels, and played in the GFL-Juniors—the youth Bundesliga of the American Football Association of Germany (AFVD). He also came to see the team’s coach, Markus Hackenberg, as a mentor: “He helped me develop as a player.” In 2024, Benedikt Mons was named to the U19 national team.
Benedikt Mons must have continued to do something right, because in early 2025, the next step was on the horizon: a move to the Frankfurt Galaxy and the transition to professional sports in the European League of Football. This was a decisive step for the humble Steinmühle student—who took advanced courses in political science and math—who is grateful not only to Steinmühle for supporting his athletic career, but also to others, such as the sports director of his current club, Thomas Kösling. “He motivated me to balance my high school diploma and training”—training four times a week, no less.
Reaching Full Potential in the U.S.
Logistically, things will get a little easier for Benedikt now that he has his high school diploma in hand. After the season, he’d ideally like to attend college in the United States. “I definitely want to keep playing, and I want to do it in the U.S. Everything about the sport is much more professional there, from training all the way to the individual support athletes receive. To reach your full potential in this sport, you have to go to the U.S.”
When it comes to this step and his athletic career, Benedikt Mons knows his parents have his back: “They support me.” Whenever possible, they even sit in the stands at his games. The high school senior regularly competes against his brother in sports. But his brother is better at hockey and tennis. “I’d rather stick with football,” Benedikt says with determination.
A lot of practice and talent, too
When asked about his career goal, the former boarding school student replies, “To make a living from sports.” Benedikt views being tied to equipment like a helmet and shoulder pads as a temporary phase. “I want to retire in my mid-30s and have made my money in the NFL by then.” Then he could imagine being a good father and helping to make the sport more attractive in Europe: “The market is growing tremendously; there’s a lot of potential.” Until then, however, Benedikt says it will take a lot of courage, a lot of time, a lot of patience, and a lot of training.
You have to run; you have to be fast. “It’s a sport for physical types,” says Benedikt Mons, describing the rough-and-tumble nature of football, while acknowledging that he himself is “genetically blessed—and grateful for it.” He’s ideal for the tight end position in football; the rest he’s earned through hard work.
But he knows that a certain amount of talent is definitely part of it. Angela Heinemann
Follow Benedikt Mons on Instagram: benedikt.mons
