With raging wildfires ravaging Southern California, the NFL has moved Monday’s wild-card matchup between the Los Angeles Rams and the Minnesota Vikings to State Farm Stadium in Arizona.
The league announced Thursday night that the move was made with public safety in mind.
Vikings vs. Rams relocation: In the interest of public safety, Monday’s Vikings vs. Rams wild card game has been moved to Arizona.
The game will be aired on ESPN/ABC/ESPN+ at the scheduled time of 8pm ET. pic.twitter.com/VVJcRZrSYM
— NFL (@NFL) January 10, 2025
The game will begin at the originally scheduled time of 5 p.m. Pacific time and will be broadcast on ESPN and ABC. Tickets for this game will go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. PT to Rams season ticket holders and to the general public at 12 p.m. PT through Seatgeek.com.
The game was originally scheduled to be held at SoFi Stadium, home of the Rams in Inglewood, California.
The surrounding area has been ravaged by multiple fires, thousands of acres of land and buildings have been destroyed, and nearly 180,000 people are under evacuation orders.
Rams head coach Sean McVay told reporters Thursday that some of the homes of team staff members were affected by the fire.
“Obviously our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by these fires,” McVeigh said. “This is one of those deals that doesn’t seem real, but it certainly is real for the people affected.”
The NFL playoffs are scheduled to begin on Saturday, with the Los Angeles Chargers taking on the Houston Texans on the road. According to ESPN, the Chargers changed their practice schedule this week to limit players’ outdoor time amid poor air quality in Southern California.
The winner of the Rams-Vikings matchup will advance to the district round on Saturday, January 18th and Sunday, January 19th. If the Rams advance, the Rams will only host a district matchup if both the second-place Philadelphia Eagles and the second-place Philadelphia Eagles win. 3 The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost their wild card matchup on Sunday.
“Every time we suit up, we’re the Los Angeles Rams,” quarterback Matthew Stafford told reporters Thursday. “We play for the people of this community, the people who support us, and this week is obviously going to be an example of that. This is a great escape for people who have been through a lot. I’m sure it will, I hope.”It’s been a tough time here the last few days. ”
Other sporting events in the area have also been affected by the wildfires. The Los Angeles Lakers’ home game against the Charlotte Hornets scheduled for Thursday at Crypto.com Arena has been postponed after Lakers head coach JJ Redick reportedly lost his home in a fire. The game between the Los Angeles Kings and Calgary Flames, originally scheduled for Wednesday, has also been postponed.
The NFL announced Wednesday that it is making contingency plans to move the Rams-Vikings game to Arizona if necessary.
The last time the NFL moved a game due to wildfires in Southern California was in 2003, when a game between the San Diego Chargers and Miami Dolphins was moved to Arizona due to poor air quality.
State Farm Stadium also hosted three San Francisco 49ers home games in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Drone video shows the devastating aftermath of the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades, California.
