The NFL announced a record nine international games for the 2026 season, highlighting winners and losers among teams. The Jacksonville Jaguars and San Francisco 49ers are noted as teams facing challenges in this schedule.
Key points
NFL announced nine international games for 2026 season
Jacksonville Jaguars and San Francisco 49ers identified as struggling teams
Announcement made on May 13
International games are part of NFL's expansion strategy
Record-setting number of games played outside the U.S.
Jacksonville JaguarsSan Francisco 49ersNFL
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The most substantial puzzle piece yet of the NFL’s 2026 regular-season schedule fell into place Wednesday, May 13, when the league revealed the full details of this year’s landmark international schedule – a record-setting nine games set to be played outside the borders of the United States.
The NFL’s latest batch of exports – tariff-free so far as we know – is a small, but growing, slice of a 272-piece pie, yet one worth a bit of further examination one day ahead of the complete reveal of the entire 2026 docket.
As such, let’s parse a few winners and losers from the upcoming international slate.
The league's quest for world domination continues – to the point that international matchups are an increasingly commonplace aspect of the schedule. This year, the NFL will stage games in four continents, seven countries and eight stadiums outside of America.
“The 2026 NFL season will feature our most expansive and ambitious international slate yet, with regular-season games spanning Melbourne, Rio de Janeiro, London, Paris, Madrid, Munich and Mexico City,” Peter O’Reilly, the league’s executive vice president of club business, major events and international, said in a statement.
“This year’s record-breaking schedule will see a host of world-class NFL franchises and star athletes play in some of the most iconic sporting venues in the world, underlying the league’s global growth vision and bringing our fans internationally closer to the game than ever before.”
It doesn’t seem like we’re very far from all 32 teams playing internationally once per season – which would mean one game abroad almost weekly as the league tries to further slake the foreign appetite for its most valuable inventory while also (likely) staving off any urge to expand outside the U.S. … and the logistical nightmare that would entail. For now.
Not only will the city make its NFL debut – São Paulo hosted a game each of the past two seasons – it will also enjoy a juicy matchup between the Baltimore Ravens and Dallas Cowboys. Interestingly, the league slotted this showdown on Sunday, September 27 (Week 3) at 4:25 p.m. ET, a customary kickoff time for “America’s Team.” And while the contest wasn't provided the exclusive broadcast slot the league so often crafts for international showcases, Sunday’s late-afternoon offerings also draw the most viewership eyeballs in a given week. Combine that with Dallas’ following, and the Rio board of tourism should enjoy quite a football bonanza at Maracanã Stadium.
Paris
Another NFL newbie as it applies to regular-season exposure, the City of Light will welcome the Steelers and Saints, the designated home team. They will play at Stade de France, the country's national stadium located just outside Paris in Saint-Denis. It’s also France’s largest sporting venue and can accommodate nearly 80,000 spectators. (But little doubt the Saints head to Notre-Dame Cathedral and send up a few prayers beforehand, right?)
Mexico City
One of the league’s most raucous and passionate outposts, it hasn’t hosted a game since 2022. But it will be a big year south of the border, the 49ers – a beloved team in Mexico and one that's proven to bring a large faction of its fans – set to host the Vikings at famed Estadio Banorte, which will also be the site of World Cup matches this year.
While it might be some odd – maybe unfair – on the surface for a team to be playing its fourth game abroad over a three-season span with the Vikes ticketed for the Mexico City game, you can be assured it's by design to some degree. As they were in Dublin and London last year, the Vikings will again be the designated road team – meaning an opportunity to continue spreading their brand and spotlighting a superstar like WR Justin Jefferson, who loves the international platform, while basically playing a “home” opponent on what should effectively be a neutral field … though that probably won’t be the case in reality against the Niners in this instance.
Australia
The league announced that the Rams would be playing Down Under more than a year ago, during the lead-up to Super Bowl 59 in New Orleans. But the game, which will also feature the NFC West rival 49ers in Melbourne in Week 1, marks a significant shift in the league’s overseas expansion. A willingness to stage a game that counts in Australia is a strong indicator that locales like Japan, Korea, maybe even China – depending on American relations with the burgeoning superpower – and elsewhere in Asia will likely be in play soon enough despite the operational challenges.
New York Jets – Arch Manning, QB, Texas
Miami Dolphins – Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State
Arizona Cardinals – Dante Moore, QB, Oregon
Atlanta Falcons – Leonard Moore, CB, Notre Dame
Tennessee Titans – Trevor Goosby, OT, Texas
Las Vegas Raiders – Jordan Seaton, OT, LSU
Cleveland Browns – CJ Carr, QB, Notre Dame
New York Giants – Cam Coleman, WR, Texas
New Orleans Saints – Colin Simmons, DE/OLB, Texas
Washington Commanders – Dylan Stewart, DE/OLB, South Carolina
Jets (from IND) – KJ Bolden, S, Georgia
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Jamari Johnson, TE, Oregon
Pittsburgh Steelers – Drew Mestemaker, QB, Oklahoma State
They’re making a loooong trip off the jump – at least they can account it for it as preseason and training camp wind down – and losing a home game in the process to play what’s a morning game locally (10:35 a.m. kickoff, 8:35 p.m. ET) at the famed Melbourne Cricket Ground. The mini-bye the Rams get on the back end will still entail some level of reacclimating quickly to West Coast time while they also begin game-planning for their Week 2 opponent.
San Francisco 49ers
They’re making a loooong trip off the jump – at least they can account it for it as preseason and training camp wind down – and losing a “home game” in the process to play what’s a morning game locally (10:35 a.m. kickoff, 8:35 p.m. ET) at the famed Melbourne Cricket Ground. (If you’ve ever been to a Rams-49ers game at SoFi Stadium, which is typically awash in red, then you know that’s usually a quick road trip the Niners embrace. Coach Kyle Shanahan has already expressed frustration regarding the game, and his – joking? – request that the Rams face his team in Mexico in the name of fairness wasn't heeded.) The mini-bye the 49ers get on the back end will still entail some level of reacclimating quickly to West Coast time while they also begin game-planning for their Week 2 opponent. And while Mexico will be more palatable, two international obligations in one season remains a substantial lift.
The River City is accustomed to loaning the Jaguars to London. But this year, the defending AFC South champions will play two home games in the United Kingdom – meaning Jacksonville will only get six games and with EverBank Stadium at limited capacity amid ongoing renovations that will also decamp the Jags to Orlando for the entirety of the 2027 campaign before an expected return in 2028. Suboptimal for the locals.
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