By Jourdan Rodrigue, Alex Andrejev and Rebecca Tauber
The wild-card playoff game between the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings on Monday will be moved from SoFi Stadium to State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., after multiple wildfires ravaged the Los Angeles County area this week, the NFL announced Thursday. The game remains scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.
The NFC’s No. 4 Rams were previously slated to host the matchup against the No. 5 Vikings at their Inglewood, Calif., venue, but the league pivoted to its contingency plan after the deadly fires burned tens of thousands of acres around Los Angeles, displacing residents under evacuation orders and destroying more than 5,000 structures, according to recent estimates from fire officials. Officials told multiple outlets Wednesday that the fires killed at least five people.
“The decision was made in consultation with public officials, the participating clubs and the NFLPA,” the NFL said Thursday.
Per a Rams spokesman, the Arizona Cardinals will open their facilities for the team to use for practice, walkthroughs and meetings ahead of Monday’s game. The Rams will travel to Arizona later on Friday.
Tickets to the game at State Farm Stadium will go on sale at 10 a.m. PT on Friday for Rams season ticket holders and at noon PT for the general public, the NFL said.
The Rams originally began practice as scheduled on Thursday afternoon. But partway through that practice, winds came through and new smoke appeared on the mountain horizon as news broke of the new Kenneth Fire in West Hills. The team canceled post-practice player workouts, locker room and media availability so players could check on family members and get home.
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Other Los Angeles sports teams, including the Chargers, adjusted their schedules due to the impact of the fires. The Chargers — who play in a wild-card playoff game against the Texans on Saturday in Houston — changed their practice schedule Wednesday to limit the time players spent outdoors on the field due to potentially unhealthy air quality.
Carlos Vela, who played for Los Angeles FC, lost his home due to the fire, his wife announced on her Instagram story. Angel City defender Ali Riley also posted on X that her family lost its home.
Clippers star forward Kawhi Leonard missed a game against the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday to be with family evacuated because of the fires.
Meanwhile, the historic Rose Bowl Stadium, located near the Eaton Fire, is in the range of evacuation orders issued.
The status of other events scheduled in Los Angeles remain unclear, including a game between the LA Clippers and the Hornets on Saturday and The Genesis Invitational, a stop on the PGA Tour planned for Feb. 10-16 at The Riviera Country Club in the Pacific Palisades.
Required reading
- Deadly LA wildfires burn thousands of acres, postpone NHL game, threaten historic sports venues
- Rams go from scheduled practice to new fire; NFL moving playoff game as fires rage on
(Photo: Mario Tama / Getty Images)
