The NFL will release the full 2024 schedule on May 15 at 8 p.m. ET, according to media reports on Wednesday.
Teams had been told informally that Thursday would be the release day but no reason was given for the delay in a league memo Wednesday afternoon, according to Sports Business Journal.
Hans Schroeder, NFL executive vice president of media distribution, wrote in the memo that more details about the plan are expected in the coming days, Sports Business Journal reported.
One explanation could be determining which games would be set for Dec. 25, which this year falls on a Wednesday. The league in late March changed its stance to allow playing Christmas Day games if the holiday was a Tuesday or Wednesday. The four teams involved would play in a doubleheader the preceding Saturday.
Another possibility is the delayed release allows teams to better prepare for such a highly anticipated day with promotion on social media tied to single-game ticket sales.
Or, the NFL could be stretching what is a one-night event into multiple days with game details staggered across multiple days, as the NFL draft has evolved.
The teams and their fans already know the opponents on their home and road schedules but not the order, dates and times.
Locked in are five international games for five teams, with most dates and all times to be determined: In Sao Paulo, Brazil, Green Bay Packers vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Sept. 6; London, Minnesota Vikings vs. TBD, Chicago Bears vs. TBD and Jacksonville Jaguars vs. TBD; Munich, Germany, Carolina Panthers vs. TBD.
Super Bowl LIX is Feb. 9, 2025 at the Superdome in New Orleans.
