Thousands of Rams fans gathered at SoFi Stadium at the crack of dawn on Monday to be bused to Arizona for the team’s Wild Card game against the Vikings.
The Rams were meant to host Minnesota after winning the NFC West crown, but the game was relocated to the Cardinals’ State Farm Stadium in Glendale due to the ongoing wildfires in Los Angeles.
Nonetheless, fans were lined up before sunrise to make the roughly six-hour bus trip to the stadium, with the Rams believed to have chartered over 40 buses for their supporters.
A line of fans could be seen wrapping around the stadium prior to 5:30am local time.
And once fans got on the buses, they were even met with gifts, as an X post from fan Allen Sales showed a towel and foam finger on his seat.
While the Rams are not playing in their home stadium, they are primed to have sizable support in Arizona.
40+ buses deep and the line wraps around Sofi. #RamsHouse pic.twitter.com/7AGhNrJG6F
— Allen Sales (@AllenSales) January 13, 2025
Of the 63,400 capacity of State Farm Stadium, 52,000 tickets were sold to Rams and Cardinals season ticket holders in a priority window, according to the NFL’s vice president of communications, Brian McCarthy.
The remainder of tickets were then opened to a general sale.
The Rams are also busing fans back from Arizona, with the game set to kick off at 6pm local time.
The fires in LA – namely those affecting the Palisades and Eaton – have resulted in massive damage in the area.
As of Monday morning, over 40,000 acres of land have been burned, with at least 12,300 structures destroyed, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The Palisades fire has burned over 23,000 acres of land and is still only 14 percent contained.
Olympic champion Gary Hall Jr. revealed that all 10 of his medals burned as he was forced to evacuate his home.
Meanwhile, Lakers coach JJ Redick also lost his home, while Russell Westbrook revealed his family and friends back home had been affected by the devastation.
‘My family is safe, but people that I know, close friends and family have lost their homes,’ he said in a statement. ‘Being from LA, never seen anything like this before.
‘Not being able to do nothing is really difficult. It’s going to be a tough rebuild, but LA is very strong and we can stick together and make something happen.’
