--- a/mobile/android/base/java/org/mozilla/gecko/Tab.java
+++ b/mobile/android/base/java/org/mozilla/gecko/Tab.java
@@ -135,16 +135,17 @@ public class Tab {
         mTitle = title == null ? "" : title;
         mSiteIdentity = new SiteIdentity();
         mHistoryIndex = -1;
         mContentType = "";
         mZoomConstraints = new ZoomConstraints(false);
         mPluginViews = new ArrayList<View>();
         mState = shouldShowProgress(url) ? STATE_LOADING : STATE_SUCCESS;
         mLoadProgress = LOAD_PROGRESS_INIT;
+        mIconRequestBuilder = Icons.with(mAppContext).pageUrl(mUrl);
 
         updateBookmark();
     }
 
     private ContentResolver getContentResolver() {
         return mAppContext.getContentResolver();
     }
 
@@ -447,23 +448,16 @@ public class Tab {
     }
 
     public void loadFavicon() {
         // Static Favicons never change
         if (AboutPages.isBuiltinIconPage(mUrl) && mFavicon != null) {
             return;
         }
 
-        if (mIconRequestBuilder == null) {
-            // For the first internal homepage we might want to load a favicon without ever receiving
-            // a location change event first. In this case we didn't start to build a request yet.
-            // Let's do that now.
-            mIconRequestBuilder = Icons.with(mAppContext).pageUrl(mUrl);
-        }
-
         mRunningIconRequest = mIconRequestBuilder
                 .build()
                 .execute(new IconCallback() {
                     @Override
                     public void onIconResponse(IconResponse response) {
                         mFavicon = response.getBitmap();
 
                         Tabs.getInstance().notifyListeners(Tab.this, Tabs.TabEvents.FAVICON);