Kansas and Arizona State will meet in the first-ever FBS game at London’s Wembley Stadium next season, multiple outlets reported Thursday.
The Big 12 schools will play at the iconic 86,000-seat venue on Sept. 19 in what originally was scheduled as a home game for the Jayhawks. It will be the conference opener for both teams.
The only previous college football game held in England came on Oct. 16, 1988, when Richmond defeated Boston College 20-17 in front of just 5,000 fans at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre in south London.
It will be the second straight year the Big 12 held a game in that part of the world. Iowa State defeated Kansas State 24-21 on Aug. 23 in Dublin, Ireland.
“Playing in Ireland (this year) is the first step,” Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said this summer. “Playing in Ireland is an impetus for future global expansion and I’m all in on it.”
Kansas has never played a game outside of the United States, whereas Arizona State lost to Houston in Tokyo in 1990.
The Jayhawks and Sun Devils met for the first time last season, with Arizona State pulling out a 35-31 win on Oct. 5 in Tempe, Ariz.
–Field Level Media
