Fans of the National Football League will know that the league has been committed to expanding operations and its brand on a global scale. Indeed, this is set to continue for the 2023 season, with the league confirming that there will be a host of games played outside of America.
The Buffalo Bills, Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs, and New England Patriots have all been announced as teams to be playing in the 2023 International Games in the upcoming campaign.
The NFL has also revealed that London will once again have two venues that will host games. Wembley Stadium – the home of the Men and Women’s National Soccer teams – will continue to be the Jaguars’ home from home due to the multi-year commitment that they have. The English capital will also have the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium hosting games, too. This venue is the only stadium to have been purposely built with the NFL in mind outside of the US, and with it having successfully hosted games in the past, it is no shock that the gridiron will be returning.
Additionally, the 2023 International Games Series will see both the Kansas City Chiefs and the New England Patriots take to the field in Europe. However, as part of the NFL’s International Home Marketing Area (IHMA) program, these two franchises will be playing in Germany. It will be the second year that Germany has hosted a game, with Munich’s Allianz Arena having hosted the match between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Seattle Seahawks. The destination of these games involving the Chiefs and Patriots will be announced later in the year.
Each Team Has Played Outside of USA Before
As part of the agreement to have been made, NFL teams are required to play outside of the USA at least once every eight years. Therefore, it is no surprise to learn that each of the five franchises to have been designated for games in the 2023 International Games Series have each tasted action outside American borders.
But, how has each team fared when they have done so? Naturally, some have been better than others, although some have not played abroad as much as others, either. We have taken the previous fixtures and results from here.
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots have been part of the International Series on three occasions, and have dominated on each occasion. In 2009, they swept away the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 35-7 at Wembley before returning in 2012 and doing the same to the then-St. Louis Rams and recording a 45-7 victory.
The team’s last appearance in a game outside of the USA was in 2017 when they traveled to Mexico and took on the then-Oakland Raiders, again winning by a blowout margin of 33-8.
Of course, this form will have been something that may have excited many punters back home, especially as sports betting is set to go live imminently. Those who will search for the best Massachusetts Sportsbooks will want to see repeat performances from their team, despite the fact that they will be without Tom Brady for their first international game. However, things have not been as smooth since TB12 departed, which makes this year’s International Game rather interesting.
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills have played outside of the USA on seven occasions, making them one of the league’s most traveled teams. Despite this, they have not traveled well, as they have only won one of those contests.
- 2008 – Miami Dolphins 16-3 Bills at Rodgers Centre (Canada)
- 2009 – New York Jets 19-13 Bills at Rodgers Centre
- 2010 – Chicago Bears 22-19 Bills at Rodgers Centre
- 2011 – Washington 0-23 Bills at Rodgers Centre
- 2012 – Seattle Seahawks 50-17 Bills at Rodgers Centre
- 2013 – Atlanta Falcons 34-31 Bills at Rodgers Centre
- 2015 – Bills 31-34 Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley
The Bills – who are a very different team from those years – will hope that they have a better time in the UK this time around, and many who follow them will be very aware of this.
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are not frequent visitors to the UK when it comes down to playing NFL football. The team led by quarterback Patrick Mahomes has only appeared across the pond once thus far. The game in Germany will only be the third time they have had to leave the country in order to play.
However, they are a team that appears to like to travel as they do rather well. In 2015, they went up against the Detroit Lions at Wembley and managed to blow them out of the water as they recorded a 45-10 victory. The other game they played was a little closer to home as it was held in Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium in 2019. They defeated AFC West Divisional rivals, the Los Angeles Chargers, 24-17. This record may make them a favorite with fans who may wish to consider wagering on the games as a way of enhancing the viewing experience they obtain.
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are the most inexperienced of franchises in the five NFL teams to have been designated for the 2023 International Game Series, as they have only ever been outside of America once. They headed to Wembley back in 2018 and were just beaten by the Los Angeles Chargers 20-19. They will be wanting a better outcome this time around, and sports bettors will be interested to see who they end up facing.
Jacksonville Jaguars
As mentioned, the Jaguars’ second home is the UK, with the team having played nine games in London. Eight of those games have been played at Wembley, with just one at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. They have a rather mixed record when flying across the Atlantic:
- 2013 – San Francisco 49ers 42-10 Jaguars
- 2014 – Dallas Cowboys 31-17 Jaguars
- 2015 – Buffalo Bills 31-34 Jaguars
- 2016 – Indianapolis Colts 27-30 Jaguars
- 2017 – Baltimore Ravens 7-44 Jaguars
- 2018 – Philadelphia Eagles 24-18 Jaguars
- 2019 – Houston Texans 26-3 Jaguars
- 2021 – Miami Dolphins 20-23 Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
- 2022 – Denver Broncos 21-17 Jaguars
The overall record stands at 4-5, which gives people that may consider wagering on the Jags something to think about next season. Again, it may simply depend on who they get at the time, as it seems they have a rather mixed bag of fortune when playing in their home away from home.
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