Chargers To Open Season Against Washington, Rams Hosting Bears On SNF
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – The Los Angeles Chargers will kick off next season on the road against the Washington Football Team, while their stadium partners will host the Chicago Bears.
The NFL announced the Week 1 matchups early Wednesday morning. The much anticipated full 2021 slate will be released Wednesday at 4:45 p.m.
The Chargers jokingly tweeted, "Our week one opponent is a football team."
The Chargers will face Washington on the morning of Sept. 12, while the Rams will play the Bears that same evening in primetime on Sunday Night Football, in what will likely mark SoFi Stadium's first regular season NFL game with fans.
Both the Chargers and Rams played at an empty SoFi for all of 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. However, with cases at their lowest since the start of the pandemic, L.A. County public health officials last month began allowing fans at outdoor and indoor sporting venues.
Currently, capacity at outdoor sporting venues in L.A. County is capped at 67%.
On May 2, SoFi Stadium held Vax LIVE, a free charity concert for about 47,000 fully vaccinated healthcare workers. It marked the largest concert gathering in Southern California since the start of the pandemic.
The new $5 billion SoFi Stadium in Inglewood opened in September of 2020. The 70,000-seat stadium is part of a new 298-acre entertainment complex located on the former site of the Hollywood Park Racetrack. It was developed and funded by Rams owner Stan Kroenke.
