The 2026 NFL season will start on Wednesday, marking a change from the traditional Thursday opener. The league has released all 16 matchups for Week 1, with the Seattle Seahawks hosting the season opener.
Key points
2026 NFL season starts on a Wednesday
Seattle Seahawks host the season opener
16 games scheduled for Week 1
Change from traditional Thursday opener
Seattle Seahawks
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With the 2026 NFL Draft in the books, football fans are starting to look ahead to the start of the season. The league's schedule release will only further serve to get them excited about Week 1.
The NFL released all 16 of its Week 1 matchups on May 14. Per usual, the reigning Super Bowl champions – the Seattle Seahawks – will host the season-opener, and the NFL will feature four stand-alone games as part of its first game slate.
That said, the first game of the 2026 NFL season will feature a notable difference from the league's season openers over the last decade. Instead of being played on Thursday, as is typical, the 2026 season will open on a Wednesday.
Here's what to know about the start date for the 2026 NFL season along with full look at the league's Week 1 schedule.
The 2026 NFL season will begin on Wednesday, Sept. 9 when the Seattle Seahawks host the New England Patriots at Lumen Field. The Super Bowl 60 rematch will be broadcast on NBC and Peacock at 8:20 p.m. ET and will afford the Seahawks an opportunity to take a victory lap against the Patriots.
Week 1 will begin with that game between the Seahawks and Patriots and end Monday, Sept. 14 when the Kansas City Chiefs play the Denver Broncos on "Monday Night Football."
Why is the NFL season opening on a Wednesday?
The NFL season has typically opened on a Thursday in recent seasons with an international game being played on Friday. However, an antitrust provision in the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 prevents the NFL from having professional games take place on a Friday or Saturday from the second Friday in September through the second Saturday in December.
As such, the NFL opted to move its 2026 season opener to a Wednesday with its first international game – a contest featuring the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams in Melbourne, Australia – taking place on Thursday.
The NFL has before opened its season on a Wednesday. Most recently, the league did so in 2012, when the New York Giants hosted the Dallas Cowboys on Wednesday, Sept. 5 to avoid conflicting with then-president Barack Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention the following day.
Full NFL Week 1 schedule
Wednesday, Sept. 9
New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks, 8:20 p.m., NBC
Thursday, Sept. 10
San Francisco 49ers vs. Los Angeles Rams, 8:35 p.m., Netflix
