Rumors of Consecutive Overseas Games for Vikings Picking Up Steam

Could it actually happen?

As it stands now, the Minnesota Vikings are slated as a road opponent for three teams who will be playing games overseas during the 2025 season. While one of those has been taken off the table with the league announcing the first two games of the season on Monday morning, it sounds like the purple could be making an extended trip overseas early in the season.

One of the two games the NFL announced on Monday morning was that the Los Angeles Chargers will be hosting the Kansas City Chiefs in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in Week 1. That means the Vikings will not be traveling to the Southern Hemisphere.

On the other hand, the rumor that the Vikings could serve as the road team for consecutive overseas games in Europe appears to be picking up steam, as both our friend Arif Hasan and Ben Goessling of the Minnesota Star-Tribune are reporting that our favorite team could be facing off with both the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns in consecutive weeks across the pond.

The rumors appear to be pointing towards the Vikings playing in the NFL’s first ever game in Dublin, Ireland against the Steelers in Week 4, and then making the trip to London to face off with the Browns at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in Week 5. This would almost certainly lead to a Week 6 bye for the Vikings, and would also make them (I believe) the first team in NFL history to serve as the road team for consecutive overseas games. The Jacksonville Jaguars have played consecutive games overseas before, but they served as the home team and they stayed in the same place, if memory serves.

While I was originally a bit sour on the idea of the Vikings playing consecutive overseas games, it might play to the Vikings’ advantage for a couple of reasons. First of all, rather than having eight home games and nine road games, they would have eight home games, seven road games, and two “neutral site” games. From what we’ve seen in the past, regardless of who the home team is for these games, there will be plenty of purple in the stands.

Second, while the Browns would have just a week to get across the ocean and get over the time differences in this scenario, the Vikings will already be adjusted and waiting for them when they arrive. That’s something that would definitely play to the Vikings’ advantage.

In a bit of a scheduling quirk, if this scenario plays out the way it’s listed here, the Vikings could potentially go 24 years without playing a game in Cleveland. The 2017 game for these two teams that was scheduled for Cleveland was also played overseas, and if this one happens to end up in London as well, the Vikings’ next scheduled trip to Cleveland is set for 2033. The last time the Vikings played in Cleveland was the 2009 season opener, which is known for a) Brett Favre’s Vikings debut and b) Adrian Peterson stiff-arming Eric Wright into the shadow realm.

We’ll know for sure on Tuesday when the league announces this year’s overseas games, but it’s starting to look more and more like we’re going to be getting up early two weeks in a row to watch Vikings football. What does everyone think of that idea?