The NFL announced on Thursday that the San Francisco 49ers will face the Los Angeles Rams in the first-ever NFL regular-season game in Melbourne, Australia. The matchup is expected to take place in Week 1, though the official date has not yet been announced.
The Australia game may not be the only international contest for the 49ers in 2026. According to Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group, the matchup Down Under does not rule out San Francisco hosting a game in Mexico City later in the season.
49ers owner Jed York confirmed that the team expects to give up a home game to play internationally during the 2026 season, noting that season-ticket holders have already been notified.
"We will most likely give up a home game this season to play abroad, and Mexico is always number one on my list," York said.
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Inman reports that a December game in Mexico City remains a very real possibility. If the 49ers do participate in two international games on separate continents, it would be a first for the NFL. Not everyone in the organization is thrilled by the prospect.
"That's not fair," fullback Kyle Juszczyk told Inman on Monday. "Then the NFL, I feel, is doing us a disservice. Because if we're going to talk about health and safety, to do two international games like that is almost like playing three games in 13 days."
Juszczyk added, "Honestly, if we're going to play in Australia or any international game, I would prefer it to be the first game of the season, because you have a lot more time to acclimate, there's more rest time as far as traveling. Whereas if you're doing it midseason, that throws off your whole schedule, including rest, recovery, and practice schedule. If we're going to do it, let's do it Week 1."
Between Melbourne and Mexico City, the 49ers will log roughly 19,600 air miles. To put that into perspective, 20 teams traveled fewer miles during their entire 2025 season. The Bengals logged a league-low 8,753, which would get you to Australia but not back. https://t.co/S0L6sKkRZZ
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Star running back Christian McCaffrey also expressed concern about the long-distance travel.
"Australia is pretty far," McCaffrey told Inman. "I'd love to see how the schedule would work. Transparently, that might be a little too far."
The Australia game also means the 49ers will miss their annual trip to SoFi Stadium to face the Rams. The venue has become a kind of second home for San Francisco, with The Faithful regularly filling the stands. However, the team still hopes to play a game at SoFi Stadium next season. The venue will host Super Bowl LXI.
The 49ers have previously played four regular-season international games. San Francisco faced the Arizona Cardinals at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City in 2005 and 2022, and competed at Wembley Stadium in London in 2010 and 2013. The team's only regular-season international loss came in the 2005 Mexico City game.
To date, 62 regular-season NFL games have been played internationally, with host cities including London, Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Madrid, Dublin, São Paulo, Mexico City, and Toronto.