"Playing abroad will be a unique experience for our players and we embrace the opportunity to serve as ambassadors for our game," Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith said in a Monday press release. "It should be an excellent matchup with two teams coming off double-digit win seasons. We know Bears fans follow us from all over the world and we look forward to playing in front of many of them in London."
The game marks the first time the Bears have participated in the NFL International Series. Chicago has played six international games, but only one regular season contest, in franchise history. The Bears will play outside of North America for the first time since an exhibition game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on July 27, 1997 in Dublin, Ireland. The trip to London is the second in club history, having beaten the Dallas Cowboys on August 3, 1986 in an exhibition game at Wembley Stadium. The Bears have also played contests overseas in Gothenburg, Sweden in 1988 and Berlin, Germany in 1991.
The matchup marks the second straight season the Bears will play an international game. Chicago beat the Buffalo Bills 22-19 in Toronto, Canada last season.
The Bears-Buccaneers contest in 2011 is the fifth time the NFL has held the International Series in the United Kingdom. Last season, the San Francisco 49ers beat the Denver Broncos 24-16 in front of a sellout crowd at Wembley Stadium.
The Bears-Buccaneers matchup takes the place of the Bears road game in Tampa Bay.
The London game will begin at noon and will air on Fox.
