GREEN BAY, Wis. — The results from a 2025 NFL Draft Impact Report look good to Discover Green Bay President & CEO Brad Toll.

“We’ve never seen numbers like that at any of the events that we’ve brought in,” said Toll.

What You Need To Know

The 2025 NFL Draft in Green Bay attendance was 600,000 people, with 362,588 unique visitors

The Brown County economic impact exceeded initial projections

The total economic impact for the state was $104,769,486

Most visitors left with a positive impression of Green Bay, per officials 

Brown County was projected to take in $20 million in spending from the 2025 NFL Draft. The actual number was $72,917,186.

“The state spend was great but more of those dollars in Wisconsin were spent in the Brown County area, which certainly is good for Brown County and it’s our job to bring those dollars here,” said Toll.

While the state as a whole took in $10 million more than originally projected, the dollars weren’t spread as far and wide as anticipated.

Toll also said media mentions during the draft brought in a value of about $50 million worth of advertising for the area.

(Sports Impact)

“There’s the economic impact that comes from the actual event, but it’s really what comes after that that oftentimes is the most exciting,” said Toll.

The official attendance for the three-day event was estimated at 600,000 people, which included 362,588 unique visitors. 

“People told us that they loved it here. That’s rewarding but at the same time it’s something we can use as we market forward to our advantage,” said Toll.

Green Bay Packers Vice President of Marketing and Fan Engagement Gabrielle Dow said football fans who didn’t make the trip still had their eyes on Green Bay in record numbers.

“Our draft was the second-most=watched draft in league history. The first-most-watched draft obviously was during COVID,” said Dow.

She mentioned another unofficial record relayed to her from a confidential league source.

“On day one, we sold more beer on Thursday night than all three days of the Kansas City draft, all three days of the Detroit draft and some say both those drafts combined, with only one arrest,” said Dow.

Both credited the community and Packers fans for helping to pull off the successful event. They said the NFL was impressed with the showing.

(Spectrum News 1/Nathan Phelps)

“The NFL was thrilled with Green Bay and maybe even a little surprised that we hit this out of the park,” said Toll.

Toll has been engaged with other cities that have draft hopes of their own and said he’s offered his advice. Both Toll and Dow hope to see the draft return to Green Bay someday.

“Yes, we’re talking to the league. Maybe 10 to 15 years, we’ll see,” said Dow.

If nothing else, they said that the lessons learned from planning the enormous event will serve them well in the future.

“It’s showing us what we can do and the possibilities of doing different things and hosting things. Could we host a festival maybe down the road? Yes,” said Dow.

Dow said Packers incoming President Ed Policy has tasked her group to build off the success of the draft and look to host more events in the future, possibly bringing more money and eyeballs to the area.

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