49ers vs. Rams in Australia Slated for Sept. 9 or 10

The NFL’s first regular-season game in Australia is now penciled in for either Wednesday, September 9, or Thursday, September 10, 2026, according to reporting from John Ourand of Puck, via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams will meet at Melbourne Cricket Ground in what will be the league’s earliest kickoff to a season in recent memory.

Initial plans had the matchup pegged for a Sunday afternoon U.S. window during Week 1, but the combination of a 15-hour flight and a seven-day turnaround before Week 2 prompted the league to reconsider. The midweek option gives both NFC West clubs a full weekend after the preseason finale to travel, acclimate, and then return home with nearly a week before their next contest.

Florio noted that the league is also juggling a Thursday night opener for the Seattle Seahawks, meaning the Australia game could anchor a Wednesday-Thursday doubleheader to launch the season. The exact order—49ers-Rams on Wednesday and Seahawks on Thursday, or vice versa—remains fluid.

The NFL is expected to unveil the complete 2026 schedule in May, yet international fixtures customarily leak early to aid travel partners and host venues. If the dates hold, the 49ers will also notch another passport stamp later that year: they are reportedly scheduled to host a December game at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, making them the first franchise to play two international regular-season games in non-consecutive weeks within the same season.