Jaguars to Play Twice Overseas as NFL Releases International Schedule

The Jacksonville Jaguars will become the first NFL team to play two international games in the same season when they spend back-to-back weeks in London this year against the Atlanta Falcons and Buffalo Bills in October, the league announced on Wednesday.

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 set to play two designated home games in London in 2020 but the pandemic canceled those plans.

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 coach Doug Pederson, who guided Philadelphia to a Super Bowl title in 2017, the Jaguars last year became the first team to win a playoff game after having the worst record the previous season.

“Hosting the Falcons at Wembley Stadium will be awesome only to be followed by playing on the road against the Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,” Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence said in a statement. “I’m pumped for the experience and know the support from Duval will be strong at both games.”

The NFL also announced dates for three other international games. The Tennessee Titans will “host” the Baltimore Ravens at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 15. NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes and the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will “host” the Miami Dolphins in Germany at Eintracht Frankfurt Stadium on Nov. 5. The New England Patriots will “host” the Indianapolis Colts on Nov. 12, also in Frankfurt.

“We are excited to bring three games to London once again, a city with a huge love for the 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 pleased to confirm that the two games in Germany will be played in Frankfurt, a city steeped in NFL heritage. We look forward to staging both games at Eintracht Frankfurt’s Stadium, building on the incredible atmosphere experienced at last season’s game in Munich.”

The NFL’s expansion to 17 regular-season games in 2021 gives teams a ninth home game in alternating seasons. Up to four of the teams from the conference whose teams are eligible for that ninth regular-season home game are designated to play a neutral-site international game each year.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Seattle Seahawks in Munich in the NFL’s first regular-season game in Germany last season. The five international games in 2022 set record-breaking attendance and viewership. Each game was sold out with a total of 356,116 in attendance. There will be no international game in Mexico in 2023 because of renovations taking place at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City in preparation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The league, which is releasing some of its spotlight games on the schedule today before the full release on Thursday, also said its first Black Friday game streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime Video will be the New York Jets hosting the Miami Dolphins at 3 p.m. on November 24.

“We’re excited to expand our relationship with the NFL and build a new holiday tradition for our customers with the first Black Friday NFL game,” said Jay Marine, vice president of Prime Video and global head of Sports, in March.