Time to get your passport ready, the Ravens are going abroad for the first time in franchise history.
The Ravens are officially scheduled to face the Jacksonville Jaguars in London’s iconic Wembley Stadium next season. The game will be played on either Sept. 24 (Week 3) or Oct. 1 (Week 4).
The league announced the previously rumored game Tuesday morning from London.
"This is a good opportunity for the Ravens and we are very excited about playing a game in London," Ravens President Dick Cass said. "We hope to see many of our fans at Wembley Stadium in London."
The game will count as a road contest for the Ravens. Per their contract with the Maryland Stadium Authority, the Ravens are obligated to play all of their home games at M&T Bank Stadium.
That’s the way the Ravens prefer it anyway, as they don’t want to give up home-field advantage.
Baltimore is one of eight NFL teams that hasn’t participated in the London Games since its inception in 2007. The others are the Cleveland Browns, Arizona Cardinals, Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers, Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans.
The Jaguars have become London’s unofficial team, as it will mark their fourth straight season headingacross the pond (they are locked into one game there per year through 2020). However, the Ravens are hoping a large contingent of Ravens fans will make the trip.
“I would absolutely love going to London,” Owner Steve Bisciotti said in 2015.
“Hopefully it would be the time of year that we could get a lot of fans over there, whether it be near Christmas or near Thanksgiving, or September when the weather is still beautiful, even in the U.K. I’m all for it. I think it would be a blast.”
Ticket sales information for will be made available once we have it, which may not come until closer to the 2017 schedule release.
For fans wishing to follow the Ravens to London next season, official travel packages will be available from PrimeSport, the Official Fan Travel partner of the Baltimore Ravens. Official packages can include hotel accommodations, game tickets, sightseeing guided tours, deluxe motorcoach transportation throughout the trip, official souvenirs, and so much more. More information on available packages and how to reserve your spot for London next season, can be found at Primesport.com.
We’ll update this story with reaction from Head Coach John Harbaugh later today.
