The Buffalo Bills are collaborating with the Toronto Argonauts to promote youth football in Canada. Announced Tuesday, this partnership includes the Argonauts and their owner, MLSE. According to a press release, this is one of several community collaborations the Bills are initiating in Canada this year.

During an event at BMO Field unveiling this alliance, former Toronto sports figures like Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, and Jozy Altidore, who became Bills minority stakeholders earlier in the year, were present. This new venture has led many to ponder whether the Bills might play a game in Canada for the first time in over ten years.

From 2008 to 2013, the Bills hosted six regular-season and two preseason games at Toronto’s Rogers Centre, which used to be the home turf of the Toronto Argonauts. These games are the only NFL regular-season matches to have ever taken place in Canada, although several preseason matches have been held there over the years.

Since 2007, the NFL has widened its international reach by holding regular-season games in different countries, such as England, Germany, Mexico, Brazil, Ireland, and Spain. By the end of the current season, a total of 55 games have been or are planned to be played outside the U.S.

Canada stands as an important region for NFL teams near the border, like the Bills, Seattle Seahawks, and Minnesota Vikings. While Southern Ontario has a notable fan base for the Bills, loyalties are spread across the league’s 32 teams. Expanding the sport internationally is logical, but with each team having only eight or nine home games annually, hosting games abroad can disrupt local season ticket holders, which has historically been a concern.

Even though traveling to Buffalo poses challenges, Toronto is considerably closer to the Bills’ stadium than many other international game destinations. So, when will the Bills take the field in Canada again? While it might not happen instantly, especially with their new 62,000-seat stadium slated for completion by 2026, a team executive left the door open to future possibilities.

“I wouldn’t rule it out,” Buffalo Bills Pete Guelli COO said in a question asked by Offside about future home games in Canada. “I think we want to build [the MLSE partnership] the right way and make sure we’re here inspiring that next generation of football fans. We’ve got a new stadium to launch and we’re probably going to play most of our games there in the short term at least, but long term, yeah, we’d absolutely consider it.”

BMO Field, which is currently expanding its capacity from 28,000 to approximately 45,000 with temporary seating for the upcoming FIFA World Cup, is a potential venue. For comparison, the lowest attendance for a Bills game at the Rogers Centre was 38,969 in 2013. The Argonauts moved to BMO Field in 2016, and the Rogers Centre, now with a reduced capacity of about 39,000, has not hosted a regular football tenant since.

With BC Place in Vancouver and Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton being the only active Canadian stadiums with a capacity over 40,000, and both being a considerable distance from Buffalo, it seems unlikely the Bills will play in Canada anytime soon. For now, Canadian fans will have to stick to watching the Bills on TV.