The NFL didn’t wait any longer for what was trending toward an inevitable decision.
The league announced Thursday evening that – ‘(i)n the interest of public safety’ – Monday night’s wild-card game between the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings, which was scheduled to be played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, will be moved to Arizona due to the wildfires that continue to rage through the greater Los Angeles area.
‘The decision was made in consultation with public officials, the participating clubs and the NFLPA,’ the league also revealed in a statement.
‘The game will be televised on ESPN, ABC, ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes at its scheduled 8:00 p.m. ET time. Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. PT Friday morning through Seatgeek.com for Rams Season Ticket Members and Noon PT to the general public. More information on ticket sales will be provided as soon as possible.’
The game will now be played at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, the Arizona Cardinals’ home.
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The Rams had signaled to their fans earlier Thursday continued plans to play at SoFi, but those intentions were superseded by ongoing safety and logistical issues in Southern California, not to mention the outbreak of another fire near the team’s practice facility in Woodland Hills. Proximity to that blaze prompted the Rams to send their players home early.
At least five fires were active in Los Angeles County, devastating more than 40 square miles across the region, according to Cal Fire. Tens of thousands of Los Angeles County residents have been forced to evacuate their homes.
‘Every time we suit up, we’re the Los Angeles Rams. We play for the people in this community, the people that support us, and this week will be another example of that,” quarterback Matthew Stafford said Thursday prior to the announcement.
“Hopefully it’ll be a great escape for people who’ve been going through a lot of tough times here the last couple days.”
Prior to Thursday, no NFL playoff game had ever been relocated during the Super Bowl era, which dates to 1966. The league did pull Super Bowl 27, which was the capstone of the 1992 season, out of Arizona when the state refused to make Martin Luther King Day a holiday in 1990. The game was finally played in Tempe, Arizona, in 1996.
However this is not the first time the NFL has moved a Monday night contest from Southern California due to wildfires. A matchup between the San Diego Chargers and Miami Dolphins in 2003 had to be shifted to Tempe. The displaced Chargers lost 26-10.
The Bolts, who relocated from San Diego to LA in 2017, have also experienced disruption ahead of their wild-card game Saturday in Houston against the AFC South champion Texans. The Chargers altered their practice schedule Wednesday due to air quality issues and wound up flying to Texas on Thursday afternoon.
This story has been updated with new information.
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