Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills‘ trip to London in 2023 wasn’t a good experience for them. It wasn’t just the result of the game that made it sour, but the whole travel experience that led Josh Allen to describe it as a “nightmare.”
The Bills quarterback talked about the NFL’s international scheduling and called for changes, recalling the difficult 2023 London trip.
Josh Allen talks about “nightmare” travel to London
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen talked about the NFL’s approach to international scheduling, describing his team’s 2023 trip to London as a “nightmare” that left lasting frustration. Speaking on The Player’s Box Podcast, Allen highlighted experience and physical toll players take on the travel with limited recovery time.
“We got there (London, England), and we were told to stay up. It was kind of a nightmare,” Allen said. “And we lost. So that when I think about it, it makes me even more mad. So, anything that keeps us here and we can jet to the game the day before is what I’m all about.”
The game in question was the Bills’ Week 5 contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Bills lost 25-20 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Allen still threw for 359 yards and 2 TDs (27-of-40), but the team had 11 penalties for 109 yards. They had entered the game 3-1 after a big win over Miami.
But Allen also took responsibility instead of blmaing it on travel. “You’ve got to be ready to play on Sundays, and it doesn’t matter if we traveled on Saturday, on Friday, on Thursday, on Monday, or on Sunday… We didn’t put up our best stuff, and they did, and that’s how they beat us,” he explained.
Allen’s complain and concern is valid as the NFL continues expanding its international slate. Each year NFL expands the rules and 2026 and 2027 might bring new ones.
The 2026 NFL international slate
The NFL has significantly expanded its international footprint in recent years, turning overseas games from occasional experiments into a core part of the regular-season calendar.
In 2026, the NFL is staging a record nine international regular-season games across seven countries which includes Australia, Brazil, England, France, Spain, Germany, and Mexico. Starting in 2027, the league is approved to play up to 10 league-operated international games per season.
Teams have flexibility in when they travel as arrivals commonly range from Monday to Friday of game week. Many now prefer later arrivals to minimize disruption to their normal routine, then fly home shortly after the game. Early kickoff times, often 9:30 a.m. ET for London games create additional challenges with sleep schedules and recovery.
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