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Jets-Vikings among NFL's international games

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Clock IconMay 15, 2024American Football

Aaron Rodgers will meet an old rival in a new uniform in a foreign country, while the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will again take the field on Christmas Day.

A clash between Rodgers' New York Jets and the Minnesota Vikings in London will be one of five International Games matchups announced by the NFL on Wednesday. The league also revealed its doubleheader of games taking place on Christmas, which includes a visit by the Chiefs to Pittsburgh to take on a Steelers team that added quarterback Russell Wilson in the offseason.

The other holiday game will see the Baltimore Ravens visiting Houston to take on the Texans in a showdown between 2023 AFC play-off participants. The Ravens ended the Texans' season with a 34-10 win in Baltimore in the divisional round back in January. 

The Jets and Vikings will square off at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Oct. 6 in one of three games that will take place in the United Kingdom capital in 2024.

The International Series will kick off on the league's opening weekend with a clash between Rodgers' former team, the Green Bay Packers, and the Philadelphia Eagles in São Paulo, Brazil on Friday, Sept. 6. That game will be the first of any kind held by the NFL in South America, as well as the first to take place on a Friday during Week 1 in more than 50 years.

The Jacksonville Jaguars will take part in the other two games held in London, and could face a rookie quarterback in each. Jacksonville will host the Chicago Bears at Tottenham Stadium on Oct. 13 and will meet the New England Patriots at Wembley Stadium one week later on Oct. 20.

Chicago selected 2022 Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams with the first overall pick in this year's draft, while the Patriots chose North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye with the third overall pick.

The Jaguars have been involved in more international games than any NFL team, as this season's matchups will be the 12th and 13th played in London in franchise history.

Munich, Germany will host the final 2024 international game when the New York Giants and Carolina Panthers square off at Allianz Arena on Nov. 10.

"We are delighted to announce these exciting matchups across London and Munich, in addition to the historic first game in São Paulo, Brazil, to complete the 2024 International Games slate," NFL executive vice president of club business, major events & international Peter O'Reilly said in a league press release. "As the league and its 32 teams continue to prioritise international growth, we look forward to building on the incredible fan experiences seen in Europe while taking the game to new fans in South America."

The Giants-Panthers contest will be the second to take place in Munich during the regular season, with the Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers having met at Allianz Arena in 2022. The NFL staged two games in Frankfurt last season, including a 21-14 victory by the Chiefs over the Miami Dolphins. 

Kansas City was handed a 20-14 upset loss at home by the Las Vegas Raiders on Christmas Day of last year, a result that stands as the team's most recent defeat. The Chiefs went on to win their final two regular-season games before recording four more post-season victories, capped by a thrilling 25-22 overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers that gave the franchise its second straight Super Bowl title. 

Both Christmas Day games will be broadcast by Netflix as part of a three-year agreement between the streaming service giant and the NFL that the league announced Wednesday.

The NFL also announced that the Giants are the featured team for its popular Hard Knocks television documentary series to be broadcast in July. This season's episodes will chronicle the team's day-to-day operations during this offseason.

The full 2024 schedule will be unveiled by the NFL at 8 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday.