Jaguars Doubling Down on London Games. Is That a Good Thing?

The Jaguars arrive in London on Friday for a 10-day stay and the team’s second two-game U.K. stint in as many seasons.

Jacksonville, which has played 11 games total across the pond, will face the Bears on Sunday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as the designated away team, before “hosting” the Patriots at Wembley Stadium next weekend. Both matchups will take place at 9:30 a.m. ET on NFL Network.

London and the Jaguars have become synonymous over the past decade. Jacksonville first planned to play two games at Wembley in the 2020 season, but that got delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Now, they are working to extend a contract (that expires after this season) to keep playing at least one game annually at the 90,000-seat venue. “We think that they’re the best partner for us to have, and certainly hope that that continues for a long time,” Jaguars president Mark Lamping told SportsPro Media. “And it’s our expectation that it will.”

The Jaguars get to keep revenue from their Wembley game each year, which is in contrast to all other international games. The NFL operates those and keeps the revenue to distribute across the league.

Jaguars owner Shad Khan also owns Premier League club Fulham, which plays in West London. In 2018, Khan dropped his bid to buy Wembley Stadium for nearly $800 million.

Tea Time

The Jaguars’ presence in London could grow even bigger in 2027, when they are planning to play their entire home schedule away from EverBank Stadium during the final year of a $1.4 billion renovation project. While the team could utilize Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium or Camping World Stadium in Orlando, it will have the option of playing up to three games in London.

Last season, the Jaguars went 2–0 in London, including an upset over the Bills, after having more than a week to acclimate to being overseas, compared to the 48-hour turnaround for Buffalo.