The LA Chargers have not played an international game since the 2019 season when Philip Rivers was still the starting quarterback. While nothing has yet been made official, that could change in 2025.
According to reports out of Brazil, the Chargers will host the league's game in Brazil in 2025. In 2024 the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers squared off in Brazil in Week 1 of the season.
At this stage, this is nothing more than a rumor but it does come from a legitimate source. According to the report, the NFL will announce the Brazil matchup before Super Bowl LIX so the Chargers fans will know for certain in a short amount of time if the team will be going international in 2025.
Who will the Chargers play in Brazil in 2025?
The Chargers are rumored to be the home team for the 2025 Brazil game, meaning there are nine different opponents who could play the Bolts in Brazil. Those opponents are the following:
- Kansas City Chiefs
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Denver Broncos
- Washington Commanders
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Indianapolis Colts
- Houston Texans
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Minnesota Vikings
The Chargers being the host team lines up with how the league typically operates to make the scheduling fair. With 17 games, the league has targeted teams with nine home games to be the international hosts that way they end up with an even number of true road and home games in the United States.
The Indianapolis Colts can be crossed off right off the bat. The Colts are set to be the host team in the league's Germany game this season, so they definitely won't be making the trip to Brazil to play the Chargers.
The NFL also has not scheduled a single division game in the Germany series and the league could follow that trend in the Brazil series. There are not enough games of evidence to make this a concrete declaration but it is probably safe to say it won't be an AFC West foe.
It's also worth noting that every road team in the history of the Brazil and Germany games also had nine designated home games and eight designated road games on their schedule. The Eagles and Washington Commanders both have nine designated road games, so they can be taken off the list.
So if history repeats itself, that leaves the Houston Texans, Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings as the three candidates to play the Chargers in Brazil, should the reports lead to an official announcement.
Minnesota last played an international game in 2024, Houston in 2019 and Pittsburgh in 2013 — the longest stretch without an international game in the league.
With the Vikings just playing an international game last year, and the Steelers rumored to be playing a game in Ireland this season, the most logical guess is the Houston Texans.