Vikings invade Heathrow as the NFL touches down in London

As Heathrow welcomes teams and fans to the UK for the kick-off of the 2024 NFL London Games, the airport is celebrating with NFL fans from all over the world by unveiling its own 'gameday stats' and celebrating its 'MVPs' - the dedicated colleagues who go above and beyond to make every journey better. With NFL fans from around the world passing through its terminals, Heathrow is the international gateway to one of this year's most anticipated sporting events.

Heathrow offers the most routes to destinations in the USA of any European airport, providing fans of American sports with direct routes to see their favourite teams in action.

Each day, passengers travel to and from Heathrow to experience once-in-a-lifetime events, from iconic moments in music to sporting feats that will go down in history. Placing itself firmly at the top of the league tables, Heathrow is celebrating its biggest wins and extraordinary team.

Heathrow's Gameday Stats & Facts

• Heathrow's Northern Runway is the longest active runway in the UK at 3,902 metres long (4,267 yards), 35.5 times as long as an American football field.

• Heathrow is the UK's international gateway and the most connected airport in the world, offering routes to 234 destinations in over 85 nations and regions.

• Of the 31 cities in the USA that Heathrow offers direct routes to, 28 are home to an NFL team. Collectively, those teams have won 41 Super Bowl trophies since the first championship game in 1967.

• 80 'teams' (airlines) operate out of Heathrow, with the most routes offered by British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, and American Airlines.

• This year, Heathrow's terminals have scored over 178,000 touchdowns and counting, Terminal 5 is in the lead, having welcomed 80,000 arriving flights, followed by Terminal 2 (45,000), Terminal 3 (37,000) and Terminal 4 (16,000).

• In 2024, more than 82 million passengers are expected to travel via Heathrow, over 1,100 times the capacity of New Orleans Saints' home stadium, Caesars Superdome (73,208), where Super Bowl LIX will take place in 2025.

• In total, around 90,000 people work at Heathrow. These 'MVPs' can be seen working on the field and behind the scenes to keep the airport running smoothly all day, every day.

Heathrow's Biggest Plays

• Since it first opened as a commercial airport on 31 May 1946, Heathrow has achieved landmark status by serving as the backdrop for countless historic moments.

• In 1955, Queen Elizabeth II opened Heathrow's first passenger terminal (later renamed Terminal 2), the Queen's Building, and the airport's original control tower. The Queen returned in June 2014 to open the current Terminal 2 building, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary.

• On 22 February 1964, over 4,000 fans overcome by Beatlemania arrived at Heathrow to welcome The Beatles back to London, following their pivotal first trip to North America.

• The iconic opening scene of the film Love Actually was filmed in Heathrow Terminal 3 in 2002.

• In 2012, Heathrow was the official host airport for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. The airport built a temporary additional terminal to accommodate more than 10,000 athletes and around 80% of Olympic visitors travelling to attend the games.

• On 28 November 2023, Virgin Atlantic's Flight100 from Heathrow to New York JFK became the first commercial flight to use 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

• In September this year, for the second year running, OAG's Megahubs 2024 report declared Heathrow the most connected airport in the world.

Among the NFL teams and fans Heathrow will welcome over the next two weeks are the Minnesota Vikings, who touched down in T3 before their triumphant game against the New York Jets. On 13 October, the Jacksonville Jaguars will go up against the Chicago Bears, before taking on the New England Patriots on 20 October. As the UK's international gateway, Heathrow is proud to provide unrivalled access to iconic international sporting and cultural events like the annual NFL London Games.

ENDS

About Heathrow 

Heathrow is the UK's international gateway and the largest airport in Europe - connecting to 234 destinations in over 85 nations and regions. The airport welcomes over 200,000 passengers on roughly 1,300 flights each day, and serves as Britain's hub for trade, tourism and investment. Approximately 90,000 colleagues work at Heathrow - the airport directly employs about 10% of them, with the rest working for Team Heathrow partners including airlines, ground handlers and retailers.