Icon Sportswire/Getty Images

2026 Pro Football Hall Of Fame Game Has Been Set

Originally posted on The Spun | By Tzvi Machlin | Last updated Mar 4, 2026 12:36 PM ET

Save the date. August 6 will be the very first game of football played for the 2026 NFL season. Granted, it'll be an exhibition game.

On Wednesday, the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced that the annual Hall of Fame game will take place between the Carolina Panthers and the Arizona Cardinals at 8 p.m. local time. The game will be played at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium outside of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.

"The National Football League’s 107th season will kick off in Canton on Thursday, Aug. 6, when the Arizona Cardinals play host to the Carolina Panthers in the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame Game presented by Novartis at 8 p.m. ET inside Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium," the organization announced today.

“Both of these teams are eager to come to Canton to open their season and to celebrate members of the Class of 2026 who meant so much to their organizations,” Hall of Fame President & CEO Jim Porter said.

It’s official! The Arizona Cardinals @AZCardinals and Carolina Panthers @panthers will open the 2026 @NFL season in Canton in the Hall of Fame Game presented by @Novartis. Tickets go on sale Monday, March 9, at noon. https://t.co/zEipy04fj5 pic.twitter.com/BoDhLEUZWe
— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) March 4, 2026

Carolina & Arizona

The Hall of Fame Game almost always showcases teams that had star players inducted into the Hall of Fame and this one is no exception. Carolina will see team legend Luke Kuechly inducted, while the Cardinals will enjoy seeing the great Larry Fitzgerald don the gold jacket.

Kuechly played for Carolina from 2012 to 2019 and ranked as one of the best middle linebackers of the decade, earning accolades every single season before retiring at the young age of 28. He is just the second player in Panthers history to reach the Hall of Fame after starting his career with the team and the only player in franchise history to reach Canton after playing his entire career there.

Fitzgerald is, simply put, one of the greatest wide receivers of all-time. He came closer than any wide receiver in history to taking down Jerry Rice's receptions record and was a dominant force in the 2000s and 2010s despite having dozens of terrible quarterbacks throwing him the ball. However, he is best remembered for his partnership with Kurt Warner in 2008, which included one of the greatest postseason runs of any player in NFL history and nearly won a Super Bowl.

GLENDALE, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 23: Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald #11 of the Arizona Cardinals following the NFL game against the Los Angeles Rams at State Farm Stadium on December 23, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona. The Rams defeated the Cardinals 31-9. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Kuechly will go down as the second-youngest Hall of Fame inductee of all-time.

Fitzgerald's mark of 1,432 receptions was just 117 shy of tying Rice's record, but is a whopping 330 receptions ahead of Marvin Harrison's fifth-place mark of 1,102 receptions. His mark may not even be sniffed until the end of the decade.

The other Hall of Fame inductees this year will be Drew Brees, Roger Craig and Adam Vinatieri.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: