Were Eagles banned from wearing green in Brazil? Why Philadelphia chose to ditch its main color for NFL opener

As the home team for Friday's historical game in Brazil, the Philadelphia Eagles got to make the first choice when it comes to uniforms. 

The Eagles could have worn green for the game, but instead, they decided to wear a uniform combination that they've never worn before: They'll be wearing their black helmet with their white jersey and black pants.

It's a combo that features almost no green. 

The Eagles' decision was interesting, if only because there had been some speculation over the summer that they wouldn't be allowed to wear green in Brazil. The Eagles and Packers will be playing at Corinthians Arena, which has an informal ban on the color green. The ban exists because the arena also serves as the home stadium for the Brazilian soccer team, Corinthians, and their biggest rival is Palmeiras, a team that just happens to wear green. Basically, it's frowned upon to wear green in the arena. 

That being said, the Eagles could have worn green for the game, they just chose not to. 

According to Eagles assistant general manager, Jon Ferrari, the decision, which was ultimately made by team owner Jeffrey Lurie, wasn't related to the ban, but it did have to do with soccer. 

"We chose the color. We sort of looked, and again, Jeffrey leadership on this: (Corinthians) is the host team, right? They're black and white. That's their color scheme. And all throughout that stadium is black and white there," Ferrari said, via Zach Berman. "So we thought the uniform combination that we've never worn before was a unique nod to them, and it got us away from the green jersey."

The Eagles are definitely going to score some points with the locals: They dumped the colors of Corinthians' hated rival to wear Corinthians' colors. 

Ferrari added that the Eagles weren't banned from wearing green, but in the end, it didn't make much sense for them to wear it. 

"I wouldn't say that we were prohibited from wearing the green jersey, anything like that," Ferrari said. "The uniqueness of the game, the uniqueness of the color combination was what made that decision."

As for the Packers, they will be wearing green, so it will be interesting to see how the locals react to that. 

The game in Sao Paulo will be kicking off on Friday at 8:15 p.m. ET on Peacock. Not only will it mark the NFL's first game ever in Brazil, but it will also be the NFL's first Friday game in Week 1 since 1970.