It’s official: There will be no international NFL games in 2020. The league announced it will move its five games scheduled for London and Mexico City this season back to U.S. stadiums.
This includes the Atlanta Falcons’ scheduled trip to London. The team said in a statement it would have more information for fans on Tuesday.
“After considerable analysis, we believe the decision to play all our games domestically this season is the right one for our players, our clubs, and all our fans in the US, Mexico and UK,” said NFL Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy & Growth Officer Christopher Halpin. “We greatly appreciate the support of our governmental and stadium partners in Mexico and the United Kingdom, who all agree with this decision, and we look forward to returning for games in both countries in the 2021 season."
The 2020 game would have been the Falcons’ first international trip since they played in London in 2014. In that game, Atlanta lost to the Detroit Lions at Wembley Stadium, 22-21.
The NFL started the International Series during the 2007 season. Games have been played in England and Mexico with the league looking to expand to other countries in the future.
The Falcons and NFL are expected to release their full schedule sometime this week. Here is the list of opponents Atlanta will face next year:
HOME: Panthers, Saints, Buccaneers, Bears, Lions, Broncos, Raiders, NFC West opponent
AWAY: Panthers, Buccaneers, Saints, Vikings, Chiefs, Chargers, Packers, NFC East opponent