The Green Bay Packers beleive they will be the team facing the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil to start the season. Team president Mark Murphy spoke to reporters during the annual Tailgate Tour on Tuesday and said they should hear a decision “pretty soon.”
“I think we’re either the first- or second-most popular team in Brazil,” Murphy said, per theteam’s official website. “As we talked about, we’re kind of the people’s team. People really like the idea of a community-owned team, with our history and tradition.”
In February, the NFL announced the Eagles will play in the league’s first-ever game in South America. The game will take place in São Paulo at the Corinthians Arena on Sept. 6. It will be the first time the NFL has played a game on Friday night in its opening weekend in more than 50 years.
The Packers are slated the play a road game against the Eagles in 2024, leading to many believing they are the favorites to play in Brazil. Along with the Packers, the Eagles’ home opponents are the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Commanders, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers.
International games uncommon for Packers
The Packers played in the first international game in 2022 when they took on the New York Giants in London. The team hasn’t played in too many international games due to opponents’ reluctance to relinquish a home game. At the same time, the Packers don’t want to give up a game at Lambeau Field to play overseas.
“This is something the league office has been talking to us for a long time about. We were the last team to play a game internationally,”Murphy said at the time. “The fans there are really going to relate well to the Packers organization. It’s a great opportunity for NFL fans in Europe to become more familiar with the Packers and be more likely to come to Lambeau for a game in the future.”
The Packers will have nine home games and eight away games this fall. They will play the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings twice (home and away) since all four teams are in the NFC North. Green Bay’s remaining home opponents are the Arizona Cardinals, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers. The Packers’ remaining away opponents are the Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans.
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