Kansas City Chiefs aim to maintain normalcy for Week 1 vs. Los Angeles Chargers with epic journey to Brazil slated for Wednesday
The Kansas City Chiefs will soon embark on an epic journey to reach São Paulo, Brazil, for their Week 1 tilt with the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Kansas City Chiefs will soon be cruising somewhere around 35,000 feet as they travel to São Paulo, Brazil, for their Week 1 tilt with the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Chiefs are set for lift-off on Wednesday, with an epic journey ahead of them to reach Brazil. With a travel time of 12.5 hours, the team will spend over half the day in travel mode to reach their final destination. Once they arrive, they aim to do exactly what they’ve tried to accomplish during the practice week leading up to this trip: maintain some sense of normalcy.
“We’ll just block out that Wednesday as a travel day,” Chiefs HC Andy Reid told reporters on Aug. 29. “I mean, it’s a ten-hour-plus trip there. So, that one, we’ll just give to the airlines. And then we’ll go ahead and pick it back up on Thursday down there and do the walkthrough part of it. And then the rest of it will stay consistent. We’ll try to keep the times consistent. There’s only a two-hour difference. So, we should be able to keep things, you know, relatively consistent going forward.”
International travel is “normal” for Chiefs HC Andy Reid and a few of his players
It’s tough to get consistency when international travel is on the agenda, but for Andy Reid, this has become somewhat routine. He’s now played in four different countries as the head coach of the Chiefs. The team played in London, England, against the Detroit Lions in 2015. Then, in Mexico City, Mexico, against the Los Angeles Chargers in 2019. Most recently, they traveled to Frankfurt, Germany, to face the Miami Dolphins in 2023. Only LS James Winchester and TE Travis Kelce appeared in each of those three games and are expected to appear in this game as well.
“I’d say if it was our first year (traveling overseas for a game), that might be a pretty big challenge, but having done it before, I think our people have a pretty good feel for it,” Reid said. “I think the players, when it is all said and done, just want to play. They don’t really care where it is. I’d probably tell you both teams feel that way. That’s what I’ve noticed over the years.”
Reid, Winchester, and Kelce aren’t the only frequent international travelers, though. Chiefs DE George Karlaftis is a native of Greece, and says he’s become accustomed to long travel days because of it.
“I don’t know how other people feel, but for me, I’m kind of almost used to it,” Karlaftis said. “You know, traveling back and forth from Greece since I was a younger kid. So it’s not, it’s not the end of the world. I mean, when you’ve done it enough, and I’ve done it since I was a year old, the first time I came to America, when I was in Greece, and kind of gone back and forth ever since, it’s kind of something I’m used to. And, you know, the more you do it, the more comfortable you get, and you know how to deal with it.”
As for what Coach Reid has come to appreciate during his international travels, he has become keenly aware of the work that goes into ensuring this is as close to a typical game as possible. From the equipment staff to the production crews, it’s a massive undertaking to get everything situated over 5,000 miles away from home.
“I just look at the time of preparation the people did (staff),” Reid said. “They tried to do it so it’s not any problem with the players or coaches. They kind of keep us out of it, but the work that goes on behind the scenes there is crazy. They’re moving up basically a whole crew to go down there for a couple of days. It’s one thing to go for a day to a game, let alone a couple days. It’s quite a challenge and then you’ve got different medical staffs that aren’t quite as familiar with what we are doing and that whole part of it. It’s an interesting process, but our guys have gotten pretty efficient with it over the years.”
Once the team lands and gets situated in Brazil, they’ll quickly turn their attention toward the game on Friday, Sept. 5 at 7:00 p.m. CT. The Chiefs’ Thursday walkthrough in Brazil will begin at 10:45 a.m. CT. Afterward, the team will hold press conferences at 11:20 a.m. CT, featuring Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, and select players.
Be sure to follow A to Z Sports’ Wendell Ferreira for boots-on-the-ground coverage of the game.
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