AFC Championship Game Live: Conference Championships, and we’ll need to wait to see the results of Divisional Round matchup between the Jaguars and Chiefs and Bengals and Bills before anything is finalized. But should the Chiefs and Bills both advance, the ensuing championship game will not be played at Arrowhead, home stadium of the top-seeded Chiefs. Read on to see why the game would be set for a neutral site, and where it would take place.
When is the AFC Championship?
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 29
- Time: 6:30 p.m. ET (5:30 p.m. CT)
- Venue: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
When will Bills-Chiefs AFC Championship tickets go on sale?
Even though we won’t know the AFC Championship teams until Sunday evening, tens of thousands of fans jumped on the opportunity to buy tickets for a potential Buffalo vs. Kansas City matchup in Atlanta.
Season-ticket holders for both teams had first priority. Those who previously opted in to buy AFC Championship tickets had the opportunity to purchase them as a part of a presale release starting at 10 a.m. ET (9 a.m. CT) on Wednesday.
Where would neutral site Bills-Chiefs AFC Championship game be held?
On January 12th, ahead of Wild Card Weekend, the NFL announced that it had identified Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta as the host site for a potential AFC Championship game between the Buffalo Bill and Kansas City Chiefs. It would be a significant warm-weather deviation from a January matchup in Kansas City.
Why is there a neutral site for Bills-Chiefs AFC Championship game?
The NFL decided to identify a neutral site for a potential Bills-Chiefs AFC Championship matchup after the decision not to resume the Week 17 matchup between the Bills and the Bengals on Monday, January 2nd, where Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a medical emergency and had to be resuscitated on the field. Hamlin spent several days at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, a level-one trauma center, before returning to Buffalo. He spent additional time at Buffalo General Medical Center before being discharged to continue his recovery supported by friends and family.
Because of the unequal number of games completed by the Bills and Chiefs (the Chiefs played 17 full games, to a 14-3 record, while the Bills played 16 to a 13-3 record), the NFL’s owners voted for a resolution that allowed for a neutral site AFC Championship should the Bills and Chiefs both advance to the game.