49ers-Rams historic matchup set to take place in Week 1, per report
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The San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams are set to become the first two teams in NFL history to play in Australia. The first reaction when that news came out was when the game would take place, considering how difficult it would be to schedule around the 14.5-hour flight.
There is still no official date or time for the game, but according to Puck’s John Ourand, the matchup will happen in Week 1. Melbourne, Australia, is generally 17-18 hours ahead of Pacific time during football season, so the scheduling will be interesting. A 10:00 a.m. PT kick in Santa Clara, California, is 5:00 a.m. the next day in Melbourne.
The schedule makers still have their work cut out for them when it comes to the preparation for Week 2, assuming Ourand’s report is accurate.
The league might do the opposite for the 49ers in 2026, giving them an early bye week rather than Week 14, per the schedule. Some have suggested that the game is played on the Sunday of Labor Day weekend to give both teams enough time to acclimate to flying there and back.
The last time the NFL played a regular-season game on Labor Day was in 2001. But that was before a 17-game season, and this could be a precursor to the 18-game schedule that’s around the corner. So, congrats to the 49ers and Rams for being the league’s test subjects.
