The Los Angeles Rams will give up a home game in 2018 to host the Kansas City Chiefs at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. The date for the game has not yet been announced and will be part of the schedule release in April.
Rams will host Chiefs in Mexico City for regular season game in 2018
The game will be the first regular season game in Mexico for both franchises.
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
It’s the third consecutive season that a regular season game will be played in Mexico City, but it was the Oakland Raiders that served as host in the last two years.
“Over the past two seasons, we have seen the extraordinary passion that exists for NFL football in Mexico,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a release Wednesday. “We are excited for another memorable event at Estadio Azteca as the Los Angeles Rams and Kansas City Chiefs head to Mexico City in 2018.”
In November, the NFL announced an agreement with the Mexico Ministry of Tourism that guaranteed regular season games at Estadio Azteca through the 2021 season.
Games in Mexico City have done well with 76,473 fans showing up for the Raiders’ 2016 game against the Houston Texans and 77,357 in attendance for a game in November between the New England Patriots and Raiders.
What are the Rams and Chiefs saying about it?
Both team owners released statements Wednesday after the game was announced.
“Southern California and Mexico share strong historic and cultural ties and this game will provide an opportunity to celebrate the special connection between these two regions,” Rams owner Stan Kroenke said. “It is great to be participating in the NFL’s international games again and working with the league to grow the game abroad. Mexico has one of the largest NFL fan bases in the world and we are excited to bring Rams football to the millions of fans there.”
“We are thrilled to be a part of the NFL’s international initiatives once again, and we are excited to face the Rams at historic Estadio Azteca this fall,” Chiefs owner Clark Hunt. “The support for the NFL in Mexico has grown significantly since our initial trip in 1996. We look forward to returning to Mexico and connecting with a new generation of fans this season.”
The Rams played home games in London in 2012, 2016, and 2017, but the trip to Mexico City will be the team’s first. The Chiefs hosted a game in London in 2015 and once played a preseason game in Mexico in 1996.
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