NFL moves Vikings-Rams game to Arizona due to wildfires

Field Level Media|published: Thu 9th January, 20:02 2025

A Chase bank on Sunset Blvd. in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood burns on Jan. 8, 2025, after a wildfire broke out in Los Angeles County on Jan. 7. The fires destroyed more than 1,000 homes, businesses and other structures, Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said at a briefing Wednesday.

Monday's NFC wild-card playoff game between the Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Rams will be moved from Inglewood, Calif., to the Arizona Cardinals' stadium in Glendale, Ariz., the NFL said Thursday.

The game was moved out of the Los Angeles area as wildfires continued to ravage Southern California. The league said in its news release it was "in the interest of public safety" to make the move.

The game is still slated for 8 p.m. ET on Monday. The league had revealed Wednesday that its contingency plan for the game would be to move it to Arizona's State Farm Stadium.

The Rams took off from practice Wednesday and returned Thursday, but they headed home early and canceled post-practice media availability as a new fire had broken out in the West Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles.

Both the Rams and the Los Angeles Chargers are preparing for playoff games this weekend. The Chargers, the fifth seed in the AFC, will face the fourth-seeded Texans in Houston on Saturday.

It isn't the first time a high-profile NFL game has been relocated due to wildfires in Southern California. The Chargers, based in San Diego at the time, had a "Monday Night Football" game against the Miami Dolphins in 2003 moved the Cardinals' home stadium at the time.

--Field Level Media

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