NFL Announces Major Update For Rams-49ers 2026 Season Opener In Australia

Matthew Stafford and Brock Purdy (Photo via Imagn Images)

NFL Announces Major Update For Rams-49ers 2026 Season Opener In Australia

Originally posted on Total Pro Sports | By Arnab Mondal | Last updated May 7, 2026 8:22 PM ET

The NFL will start the 2026 season with a big international game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams. According to Andrew Marchand of The Athletic, Netflix will stream the Week 1 game from Melbourne. The game is scheduled for Sept. 10 at 8:35 p.m. ET at the Melbourne Cricket Club.

This will be the NFL’s first regular-season game played in Melbourne. It also adds to Netflix’s growing partnership with the league. The streaming service already showed Christmas Day NFL games over the last two seasons and will air another Christmas double-header later this year.

Fans in the local team markets will still be able to watch the game on regular TV. Everyone else will need a Netflix subscription to stream the NFC West game.

Shanahan Questions International Travel Plan

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey runs the ball against Los Angeles Rams safety Quentin Lake (Photo By Kyle Terada-Imagn Images)

49ers coach Kyle Shanahan was clearly frustrated about the trip earlier this year. He responded sarcastically when reporters asked about the long flight to Australia.

“I was so fired up. That was our goal, to go 19 hours away to play a game,” Shanahan said. “I think we’re going back in time or into the future. I think we gain a day or lose a day. I’m not sure which one yet.”

: Week 1's matchup between the 49ers and Rams in Australia will be a Netflix exclusive broadcast.

Expect an extremely high amount of games this upcoming season to be exclusively streamed.

pic.twitter.com/9rHAjqOKUy
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) May 7, 2026

Shanahan later added, “But it is what it is. We’ll deal with it.”

The coach also pointed to the Rams’ role in the scheduling decision. Shanahan claimed the Rams wanted the 49ers as their opponent in Australia because 49ers fans often take over SoFi Stadium during games in Los Angeles.

“I know for a fact they did, and that’s what’s so bothersome,” Shanahan said. “Hopefully, the league will do right and let us play the Rams in Mexico, since we’ve gotta go out of the country twice.”

The 49ers reportedly will play another international game in Mexico City during Week 11. Shanahan pushed for the Rams to make that trip as well.

“And I get that,” Shanahan said. “That would suck to have to do silent cadence and have our home game at their stadium, so I get their ambitions.”

The NFL is expected to release the full 2026 schedule soon. That announcement will give fans more details about game times, TV coverage, and the league’s international slate.

For now, the 49ers and Rams already know they will begin the season far from home and in front of a worldwide audience on Netflix.

This article first appeared on Total Pro Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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