Having not played an international game since 2017, the Ravens have three road opponents now scheduled to host games in Europe during the 2022 regular season.
In addition to Jacksonville already preparing to host a game at Wembley Stadium in London this fall, the NFL announced Monday that New Orleans will play a contest at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London and Tampa Bay will host a game at FC Bayern Munich Stadium, the first regular-season game in league history to be played in Germany. The opponents and dates for those games will be announced later this spring, but the Ravens are slated to play the Jaguars, Saints, and Buccaneers this coming season, which will represent a third of their road games for 2022.
Since the Ravens played the first international game in franchise history at Wembley Stadium on Sept. 24, 2017, 22 different NFL teams have been scheduled for at least one game outside the United States, meaning John Harbaugh’s team would seem likely to take another turn in the not-too-distant future. Baltimore will certainly hope its next trip abroad goes much better after suffering an embarrassing 44-7 loss to the Jaguars, which tied for the worst margin of defeat in team history.
At the time, Harbaugh expressed little enthusiasm for playing another game in London, citing some logistical challenges and Jacksonville having an experience edge playing games there.
“I am sure they understand it better than we do. I would try to figure out some different ways to do it,” Harbaugh said the day after that blowout loss in the United Kingdom. “There were certain things that came up that you looked at and you go, ‘That wasn’t ideal.’ But we really had no way of knowing that. Even all the people that we talked to, you do not get everything. Then, some things we have no control over. We have no control over where we stay, how far the bus ride is, and how long it takes us to get to the stadium and those kinds of things. What impact they have are things we look at.
“To be honest with you — maybe I will get in trouble for saying this — I do not plan on going over there any time soon to play again. Somebody else can have that job.”
Of course, that isn’t the Ravens’ call to make as the league will likely see strong appeal in showcasing 2019 NFL MVP and superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson on an international stage. In other words, even if the Ravens aren’t off to Europe this fall, there’s a strong chance such a trip will be on the docket over the next few years.
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The league also announced Arizona would host a game in Mexico City and Green Bay would play one in London — making the Packers the last of the 32 teams to play a game there — this coming season, but the Ravens aren’t scheduled to play either of those NFC teams in 2022.
As part of the NFL’s expansion to a 17-game regular season, it was decided that — beginning in 2022 — up to four teams from the conference eligible for a ninth home game would instead be designated to play a neutral-site international game every year. The Ravens and the rest of the AFC will play eight home games and nine on the road this coming season.
