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Colts fan over American and British flags at NFL game in London
The NFL has played dozens of games in London over the past couple of decades, and that’s where the Colts and the Commanders will face off on Sunday. However, the novelty may be wearing off, as the league has massively discounted the price of admission while irking some fans who already shelled out a sizable chunk of change to attend the game.
It’s been 21 years since the NFL held its first regular season game outside of the United States when the Cardinals and the 49ers met in Mexico City in 2005. However, it really kicked off its efforts to expand its global appeal when London’s Wembley Stadium served as the site of a showdown between the Giants and the Dolphins in 2007, a matchup that officially ushered in the International Series Era.
As things currently stand, nine countries outside of the United States have been the site of at least one meaningful NFL game, and the United Kingdom fully leads the way when it comes to the one that’s hosted the most.
As of the start of the 2026 season, 42 games had been played in three different stadiums in London, and that number will rise to 45 by the time it wraps up. The Colts and the Commanders will kick off that slate on October 4th, but the NFL has been forced to cut the price of admission in the week leading up to the contest.
The NFL irked some fans by reducing the price of tickets to the game between the Colts and the Commanders in London
Sunday will mark the 13th time an NFL game has unfolded at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. It’s also the first time either the Colts or the Commanders will play there; Indianapolis previously played at Wembley in 2016, and Washington will experience London for the first time after making its international debut in Spain last year.
Every game that’s been played at the home of the Spurs has boasted at least 60,000 fans in attendance, but according to the Associated Press, the NFL seems to be worried that streak is in danger of coming to an end based on the move it pulled as the game gets closer.
The outlet reports the league was charging upwards of $325 for tickets when they went on sale this summer, but the more than 2,000 tickets that were still up for grabs as of last week are now listed at $105 apiece.
Andy Burrows, a Commanders season ticket holder who routinely travels from his native United Kingdom to America to attend games and was named the NFL’s International Fan of the Year in 2025, voiced his displeasure with the decision after dropping $312 on his tickets when tickets went on sale over the summer.
Matt Cullen, another local, noted this could be a short-sighted move that could create a self-fulfilling prophecy by motivating fans to wait for prices to drop before they buy tickets for future games (there are three more scheduled for London in 2027).
It doesn’t seem like there will be a noticeable number of empty seats on Sunday when everything is said and done, but this is certainly a potential issue worth keeping an eye on.