Streaming Details for 49ers-Rams Season Opener in Australia Announced

The San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams are one of the top rivalries in the NFL, so it makes sense why the league would want to feature both teams in one of the biggest games of the season.

Both teams will play each other in the 2026 season opener in Melbourne, Australia - the first-ever NFL game played in the country as part of the league's International Series.

According to Andrew Marchand of The Athletic, details of when and where the game will be played are finally known, as well as how fans can stream it.

"Netflix will air the NFL's first-ever regular-season game from Australia during this year's opening week, sources briefed on the move tell The Athletic," Marchand reported.

"The streaming platform will air the Week 1 game between the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams on Thursday, Sept. 10, with kickoff at 8:35 p.m. ET from Melbourne Cricket Ground, the largest stadium in Australia. NBC is expected to handle production of the game."

The 49ers-Rams season opener will be the fourth game to air on Netflix during the 2026 season in addition to two Christmas Day games and a Thanksgiving Day game.

The league has moved toward allowing streaming platforms more expansive coverage.

Amazon Prime airs "Thursday Night Football" games weekly during the regular season in addition to Black Friday games. Peacock airs an AFC wildcard playoff game, ESPN+ will reportedly stream an International Kickoff Game, and YouTube TV is in talks for exclusive broadcast rights for a five-game regular-season package.

Though there's plenty of buzz for the NFL's Australian debut, someone who isn't exactly thrilled is 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.

"I was so fired up [when I heard]," Shanahan sarcastically told reporters. "That was our goal to go 19 hours away to play a game. … We'll deal with it. And I think there's [nine] international games. We've got two of them, so we're fired up about that.

"… I don't see any pro [for us]. It's cool for the league to play globally. I think that's awesome. But as far as the team doing it, no, there's not much benefit to it. Sometimes it's nice to get a bye week after but doesn't happen in Week 1."

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This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 5:58 PM.