The National Football League (NFL) have announced their return to London with two games scheduled to be played in October at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The stadium, constructed in 2019 and currently the third largest football stadium in the United Kingdom (UK), will host the Atlanta Falcons, New York Jets, Jacksonville Jaguars, and the Miami Dolphins.

Last season the NFL did not host a game in London due to the COVID-19 pandemic, marking the first time since the inception of the NFL international series in 2007 that the league did not host fixtures in the UK.

Speaking on the announcement, NFL executive vice president, Christopher Halpin said: “We are excited to be returning to London and welcoming back our fans for two great matchups.”

“We expect these games to be a celebration of our sport and our robust UK fanbase,” Halpin said.

“We have been working closely with the UK government, the city of London and the relevant health organisations over the past year in planning the games.

“Through their successful vaccine rollout and commitment to bringing crowds back to sports events, the time is right for the return of NFL football this fall.

“We will continue to monitor the COVID environment, putting health and safety first, and will adhere to any and all future COVID regulations and restrictions,” he said.

The proposed fixtures will depend on the UK’s future COVID-19 numbers with a current 7-day average of 1,918 cases and reaching as high as a 7-day average of 53,904 cases in January 2021.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that outdoor sports venues will be permitted to host up to 10,000 fans from the May 17, marking the first time since December that fans were allowed in stadiums with a limit of 2,000.