Broncos’ London trip nixed; NFL stays in U.S.

The NFL announced Monday that its international schedule of games this year will be played in the United States due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Although not officially announced, the Broncos were expected to play the Atlanta Falcons at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this fall. That game will be moved to Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

In addition to the Broncos-Falcons game, the Jacksonville Jaguars were scheduled to play two “home” games at Wembley Stadium and the Miami Dolphins (London/Tottenham Hotspur Stadium) and Arizona Cardinals (Mexico City/Azteca Stadium) were expected to play international “home” games. The NFL schedule will be unveiled at 6 p.m. Thursday on the NFL Network.

“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 U.S., Mexico and U.K.,” said NFL Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy & Growth Officer Christopher Halpin in a statement. “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 Broncos had begun to plan for a potential game in London, chiefly the logistical challenges of moving their operations across the Atlantic Ocean for a week. At the scouting combine in Indianapolis earlier this offseason, coach Vic Fangio said his preference was to play an East Coast road game (New England, Pittsburgh, Carolina or the New York Jets) before going straight to London.