NFL won’t play games in Europe and Mexico in 2020 because of coronavirus

Wembley Stadium (Wikimedia Commons)

According to ESPN on Monday, the National Football League will not have games in Mexico or Europe in 2020 because of coronavirus. There were initially four games scheduled in London, England this year, and one game in Mexico City.

Of the four games scheduled in the capital city of Great Britain, the Jacksonville Jaguars were to host two games at Wembley Stadium. Meanwhile, the Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins were each supposed to host one game at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The Jaguars organization has a direct connection with the English Premier League. That is because their owner, Shahid Khan of Lahore, Pakistan, also is the owner of Fulham.

For the game in Mexico, the Arizona Cardinals were to be the host team. The historic soccer stadium of Estadio Azteca in Mexico City was to be the venue. Currently, there are 194,990 cases of coronavirus in Great Britain and 29, 427 deaths. In Mexico, there are 24, 905 cases and 2,271 deaths.

The 2020 National Football League schedule is currently set for Thursday. According to Charlie Gasparino of FOX News, the NFL executives will allow each local jurisdiction to determine how many fans they will allow in the seats.

Two politicians who are pessimistic of the NFL returning in September with fans in the stadium are the California Governor Gavin Newsom and the Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti. There are currently 56, 705 cases of coronavirus in California, and 2,309 deaths.

Meanwhile, in Las Vegas, there is a strong effort to get Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada built for the start of the 2020 National Football League season. However, it has come at a very controversial cost from a health perspective. That is because 16 construction workers in Las Vegas have tested positive for coronavirus as of May 1. In September, the Oakland Raiders are moving to Las Vegas and will become the Las Vegas Raiders. Construction on the stadium has not yet been stopped according to Mike Florio of NBC News. There are currently 5594 cases of coronavirus in Nevada and 268 deaths.