Rams, Chargers, 49ers to open season without fans in attendance

The Rams, Chargers and 49ers have all announced they will begin the season without fans in attendance at their home games.

"After careful consideration and discussion with state and local health officials, the Los Angeles Chargers, Los Angeles Rams and SoFi Stadium have announced that Rams and Chargers games will be held without fans in attendance until further notice," the Chargers and Rams said in a joint statement.

The teams' NFL neighbor in Northern California issued a similar statement Tuesday.

"We can confirm that we will begin our season on September 13th against the Arizona Cardinals without fans in attendance," the 49ers said in their statement, later using the word "if" in regard to having fans at Levi's Stadium at any point during the season.

The Chargers and Rams are entering their first season sharing the newly constructed SoFi Stadium,which has been under construction since November 2016 and has cost Rams owner Stan Kroenke more than $5 billion to build.

"It's a bummer, but obviously these are kind of the times we're living in and just excited about the opportunity to be able to play there," Rams coach Sean McVay said after practice Tuesday. "We'll hopefully be able to get fans in there sooner than later, but it's all for the right reasons and being safe and being smart."

In a statement, Kroenke said the Rams would not speculate on when fans could be allowed in attendance. "The health and well-being of our employees, community and the nation remains our highest concern," Kroenke said.

The Rams held a scrimmage last Saturday at SoFi Stadium and will scrimmage there once more before their Week 1 opener at home on Sept. 13 against theDallas Cowboyson Sunday Night Football.

The Chargers' first home game is scheduled for Sept. 20 against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 2.

Also on Monday, the Buffalo Bills announced they will play their first two home games without fans present, while not ruling out the possibility of allowing some into the stadium before season's end.

The Bills announced the decision on their Twitter account Tuesday following discussions with state and county health officials. The team said it is still attempting to establish policies and procedures "that hopefully permit fans later this season.''

ESPN's Lindsey Thiry and The Associated Press contributed to this report.