NFL Announces 5 Games For 2023 International Series, Teams For Game 1 On Black Friday
Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars will become the first NFL team to play two international games in the same season.
Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars will become the first NFL team to play two international games in the same season when they spend consecutive weeks in London this year.
The Jaguars will “host” the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium on October 1 and “visit” the Buffalo Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 8. The Jaguars were due to play two designated home games in London in 2020, but the pandemic has canceled those plans.
The NFL also announced dates for three more international games and released opponents for a few more games, including the first Black Friday matchup.
The Tennessee Titans will “host” the Baltimore Ravens at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 15th. NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes and the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will “host” the Miami Dolphins to Germany at Eintracht Frankfurt Stadium on Nov. 5. The New England Patriots will “host” the Indianapolis Colts on November 12, also in Frankfurt.
Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets will host the Dolphins on November 24th. The defending NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles will host the New York Giants on Christmas Day in a playoff rematch. The Chiefs will host the Cincinnati Bengals on New Year’s Eve in another playoff rematch.
The entire NFL schedule will be released Thursday night.
“Hosting the Falcons at Wembley Stadium will be fantastic just to be followed by the away game against the Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,” Lawrence said in a statement. “I am thrilled with the experience and know Duval’s support will be strong in both matches.
The Jaguars have played nine games in London, including a 21-17 loss to the Denver Broncos last October in front of an NFL-record international crowd of 86,215 fans at Wembley Stadium. Under first-year head coach Doug Pederson, who led Philadelphia to the Super Bowl in 2017, the Jaguars last year became the first team to win a playoff game after posting a worst record the previous season.
It will be the second trip to London for the Titans and the Ravens.
“It’s exciting to witness and play a part in the rise in popularity of the NFL around the world,” said Ravens president Sashi Brown. “This is an incredible opportunity to play upfront and connect with Ravens fans in the UK and across Europe.”
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Seattle Seahawks in Munich in the first NFL regular season game in Germany last season.
“We are thrilled to be heading to Frankfurt this fall to play the Dolphins,” said Chiefs owner Clark Hunt. “The Chiefs have a long history of helping to grow the game of football around the world and we have been eagerly awaiting our chance to play in Germany.”
The Patriots are 3-0 in international play while the Chiefs are 2-0.
“Germany has some of the most passionate sports fans in the world and has always been an international leader in enthusiasm for American football and the NFL,” Patriots owner Robert Kraft said. “I am excited to play a home game in this new market and continue to build on our team’s long history and engagement with German fans. Our goal is to connect with fans locally and I look forward to expanding that fan base and fostering further relationships and partnership opportunities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.”
There will be no international matches in Mexico in 2023 due to ongoing renovations at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
The five international games in 2022 set records for attendance and spectators. Each game sold out with a total of 356,116 in attendance.
“We are thrilled to once again bring three games to London, a city with a huge love of sport and a passionate fan base across the UK,” said Peter O’Reilly, NFL executive vice president, club business, major events and international “We are also delighted to confirm that the two games in Germany will be played in Frankfurt, a city steeped in NFL history. We look forward to hosting both games at Eintracht Frankfurt’s stadium, building on the incredible atmosphere experienced during last season’s match in Munich.”
Expansion of the NFL to 17 regular season games in 2021 gives teams a ninth home game every other season. Up to four of the conference teams whose teams are eligible for the ninth home game of the regular season are designated to play an international game at a neutral venue each year.
The Jaguars host a match at Wembley Stadium as part of their multi-year commitment to play in Great Britain.
“The addition of the road race against Buffalo allows us to maximize the logistical efficiency of our travel to and from the UK while maintaining a strong slate of games at our very home at TIAA Bank Field,” said the chairman of Jaguars Mark Lamping in a statement.
AP Pro Football writer Mark Long contributed to this report.
