The Los Angeles Rams fear for their home field advantage ahead of the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers. Fans away from the Los Angeles area are said to be discouraged from buying tickets.

Munich/Los Angeles – The Los Angeles Rams are one step away from the Super Bowl after a last-minute win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Ahead of the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers, the franchise wants to make sure it really enjoys home field advantage. The background to the concerns is that SoFi Stadium was already predominantly decked out in the visitors’ colours, much to the displeasure of the hosts, in San Francisco’s 27-24 overtime win in Week 18.

According to the Mercury News, the Rams informed ticket-seekers via the Ticketmaster platform that public sales for the game are limited to residents of the Los Angeles area. Residency will be determined by the credit card billing address at checkout.

The Rams are aiming to become the first team to host the Conference Championship and Super Bowl in consecutive games. The 49ers, meanwhile, are two wins away from joining the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers as the only franchises to have won six Lombardi Trophies.

Away fan containment: Rams far from only team

“CBS” reports that the Tennessee Titans used a similar tactic before their Divisional Round game against the Cincinnati Bengals in hopes of limiting the number of Bengals fans at Nissan Stadium.

Under the Titans’ adjusted rules, tickets for last Saturday’s game could not be transferred to buyers until 24 hours before kickoff.

Said tactic didn’t seem to work, however, as scores of Bengals fans were on hand to celebrate their team’s last-minute win in Nashville.