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• WHERE: Melbourne Cricket Ground (Melbourne, Australia)
• WHEN: Week 1 | Sept. 10 | 8:35 p.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: TBD

As the NFL embarks on new ground Down Under, the league's Australian debut might well be the most high-profile international offering of the season, with NFC West rivals and 2025 playoff teams facing off in a huge matchup.

Reigning MVP Matthew Stafford and the Rams' galaxy of all-stars are aiming for a Super Bowl after advancing to last season's NFC Championship Game. The matchup is also slated to mark the debut of former Chiefs standout Trent McDuffie, a prized offseason acquisition for L.A. The 49ers, who made it to the Divisional Round last season, should also see the returns of injured defensive stalwarts Fred Warner and Nick Bosa in this one.

Offense grabs the marquee, though, and fans will have ample reason to get their fantasy lineups locked in early as the 49ers' Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey will look to keep up with Stafford, Kyren Williams, Puka Nacua and Davante Adams.

Los Angeles has won four of the last five in the Sean McVay-Kyle Shanahan rivalry entering what will stand as the season's second game, coming a day after the reigning Super Bowl-champion Seattle Seahawks open the year in the annual NFL Kickoff Game in a rare Wednesday tilt.

-- Grant Gordon

• WHERE: Maracanã Stadium (Rio de Janeiro)
• WHEN: Week 3 | Sept. 27 | 4:25 p.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: CBS, Paramount+, Â鶹¹ú²ú

For a third straight year, the NFL is returning to Brazil, this time with a matchup between the Ravens and Cowboys.

Unlike the league’s previous two showdowns in South America (Packers-Eagles in 2024 and Chiefs-Chargers in 2025), which took place on Friday of their respective season's Week 1, Baltimore and Dallas will benefit from a couple games of tape to scout each other when the two tussle in Week 3. 

An uncommon interconference matchup, the Ravens and Cowboys have played each other just seven times previously, with Baltimore holding a 6-1 record over Dallas and a two-game winning streak.

A matchup between Lamar Jackson and Dak Prescott has been rarer still. The two-time Most Valuable Player triumphed in their only head-to-head game -- a 2024 nail-biter that saw Dallas fall short, 28-25, despite storming back with 19 unanswered points in the final frame.

Prescott, backed by a revamped defense, will look to even the score against Jackson on the international stage as the Ravens venture through the early stages of their first season under head coach Jesse Minter.

-- Bobby Kownack

• WHERE: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (London)
• WHEN: Week 4 | Oct. 4 | 9:30 a.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: NFL Network, Â鶹¹ú²ú

Starting the NFL's three-week stay in the United Kingdom, both of these teams are in desperate need of bounce-back campaigns and both are returning to Europe for a second straight year: the Commanders lost to the Miami Dolphins in Madrid, and the Colts bested the Falcons in Berlin, a season ago.

Jayden Daniels figures to be back to form to lead the Commanders after the dazzling dual threat suffered through an injury-plagued sophomore season.

The Colts are hoping they'll have Daniel Jones back at quarterback by Week 4, as well. Jones resurrected his career in his first season with Indy before an Achilles tear ended it prematurely. Jones re-signed with the Colts, but just when he will resume playing remains unclear.

In 2024, Daniels and the 12-5 Commanders were a Cinderella story, advancing all the way to the NFC Championship Game. Washington couldn't build on that success last year, sputtering to a polar opposite 5-12 finish.

In 2025, Jones and the Colts were a surprising feel-good story when they sprinted out to an 8-2 beginning, but crashed and burned with seven straight losses leaving them out of the playoffs.

Washington and Indianapolis enter 2026 on similar paths that will lead them to London.

-- Grant Gordon

• WHERE: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (London)
• WHEN: Week 5 | Oct. 11 | 9:30 a.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: NFL Network, Â鶹¹ú²ú

The Eagles haven’t traveled to Jacksonville to play the Jaguars since 2010, and that 16-year streak is now destined to extend beyond the 2026 season. 

Instead, Philly will visit the Jags' home away from home: London. 

Their Week 5 matchup will mark the second time the two squads have played each other in London. Back in 2018, Doug Pederson’s Eagles emerged from the U.K. victorious over Doug Marrone’s Jaguars at Wembley. 

This time around, Nick Sirianni is set to lead Philadelphia against Liam Coen and a Jacksonville crew looking to build off a statement 13-4 season. 

How will that momentum be looking for the Jaguars at the quarter point of Coen’s second season, and will an Eagles offense that failed them in last year’s Super Bowl defense have rediscovered its mojo by then? 

-- Bobby Kownack

• WHERE: Wembley Stadium (London)
• WHEN: Week 6 | Oct. 18 | 9:30 a.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: NFL Network, Â鶹¹ú²ú

As has become custom, Jacksonville will remain in London for back-to-back tilts, only the club will be leaving Tottenham Hotspur Stadium behind and taking the tube to Wembley for what’s sure to be a vital divisional matchup with the Texans.

The Jaguars and Texans have taken turns capturing the AFC South since 2022, with two Houston division titles sandwiched between two Jacksonville ones. 

Last season, the 13-win Jags and 12-win Texans split their series, each winning a game by seven points. 

Jacksonville went on to wrest away the division, but Houston made it a round further in the playoffs. Still, the Jaguars remain the team entering the 2026 campaign riding high coming off their second-best regular season in franchise history, a team seemingly on the ascent thanks to Liam Coen’s arrival. The Texans, conversely, have stalled out in the Divisional Round three years running, their latest such exit a heartbreaker in which C.J. Stroud tossed four interceptions. 

The storyline of a new season will already have quite a bit written by the time these two squads meet in mid-October, but their London showdown should nonetheless be a consequential chapter.

-- Bobby Kownack

• WHERE: Stade de France (Paris)
• WHEN: Week 7 | Oct. 25 | 9:30 a.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: NFL Network, Â鶹¹ú²ú

After hosting the NFL's debut in Dublin last year, the Steelers will play visitors to the Saints in the league's first trip to Paris.

As the 2026 schedule is being unveiled, the Steelers' quarterback situation remains among the league's biggest mysteries. Youngsters Will Howard and Drew Allar are in house, but the seemingly annual quandary of what Aaron Rodgers will do carries on. Should Rodgers return to the Steelers' starting lineup, he'll likely match up opposite Tyler Shough for the first time.

After an impressive rookie campaign, Shough figures to lead New Orleans into this one and seasons to come, if the Saints have their way.

Intrigue will be offered from the sidelines as Pittsburgh's Mike McCarthy, the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys from 2020 through 2024, will oppose Kellen Moore. The Saints' second-year coach was McCarthy's offensive coordinator for three seasons (2020-22).

One of the league's most heralded franchises, the Steelers will play an international game for just the third time, having prevailed in Dublin against the Vikings last year. The Saints, meanwhile, will play their fourth international game ever, having gone 2-1 in games played in the United Kingdom, previously.

-- Grant Gordon

• WHERE: Bernabéu Stadium (Madrid)
• WHEN: Week 9 | Nov. 8 | 9:30 a.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: NFL Network, Â鶹¹ú²ú

When the NFL descends upon Madrid for the league’s second trip to Spain, it will do so with an assortment of young talent on the marquee, as Bijan Robinson and the Falcons host Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and the Bengals.

A season ago, the NFL touched down in Spain with the Miami Dolphins defeating the Washington Commanders, 16-13. Though he struggled in the victory, Tua Tagovailoa could have a chance to go 2-0 in Madrid as he’s set to battle it out this summer for the Atlanta starting quarterback spot with Michael Penix.

Robinson, however, has emerged as the face of the Falcons and one of the top talents in the NFL. Following his first All-Pro season and a career and league-best 2,298 scrimmage yards, Robinson will aim to propel Atlanta back to prominence after an 8-9 2025 campaign -- the club’s eighth straight losing effort.

While new Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski offers up an offense that features Robinson, wide receiver Drake London and tight end Kyle Pitts, Zac Taylor and Cincinnati counter with Burrow, five-time Pro Bowler Chase and fellow wideout extraordinaire Tee Higgins.

Like the Falcons, the Bengals are aiming for a rebound, having gone 6-11 last season and missed out on the postseason for a third year in a row.

The star-studded affair is a rare matchup, as well, with Burrow and Chase having played the Falcons just once in their careers (a Week 7 win in 2022 in which Burrow threw for 481 yards with two of three TDs going to Chase).

Robinson, however, will play against the Bengals -- who had the 25th-ranked defense last season -- for the very first time in his already illustrious career.

-- Grant Gordon

• WHERE: FC Bayern Munich Stadium (Munich)
• WHEN: Week 10 | Nov. 15 | 9:30 a.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: FOX, FOX One, Â鶹¹ú²ú

Subbing out a trip to the Motor City for Munich, the Patriots have been announced as the Lions’ Week 10 opponent in Germany. 

New England and Detroit have not faced off since 2022. In the time since, both teams have undergone massive transformations for the better. 

Out of nowhere, the Patriots went from 4-13 in 2024 to the AFC’s Super Bowl representative last season during Mike Vrabel’s first year in charge. They boast an MVP runner-up in Drake Maye who catapulted up the quarterback ranks in just his second season and a top-five defense capable of shutting down even the best NFL offenses.

Although the Lions missed the playoffs last season, they have won 36 games over the past three seasons. They have an offense, led by Jared Goff, overflowing with talent uniquely qualified to test the limits of New England’s D.

Among Detroit’s stacked cast of playmakers, Amon-Ra St. Brown's impending participation is particularly noteworthy. His mother was born in Germany and he’s said it’s long been a dream to play there. Of course, the Pats will do their best to make his trip a nightmare.

-- Bobby Kownack

• WHERE: Estadio Banorte (Mexico City)
• WHEN: Week 11 | Nov. 22 | 8:20 p.m. ET
• HOW TO WATCH: NBC, Peacock, Â鶹¹ú²ú

The 49ers' schedule abroad concludes in the league's final international offering of the year.

Bookending the International Games slate, the 49ers kick off their season in Australia and will mark the NFL's return to Mexico for the first time since 2022, when San Francisco defeated Arizona at Estadio Azteca.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan and his 49ers, who haven't played internationally since that 2022 game, will face Kevin O'Connell and a Vikings team that played twice in Europe a year ago, splitting games in Ireland and England.

Minnesota has won each of the last two matchups against San Francisco with different quarterbacks (2023 with Kirk Cousins; 2024 with Sam Darnold). The Vikings will have another starter this time, around, too. It's most likely to be Kyler Murray or J.J. McCarthy, who are set for a QB competition.

The 49ers are likely to be massive fan favorites and are also ready for the return of tight end George Kittle, who tore his Achilles in his team's playoff win last season over the Philadelphia Eagles. Kittle starred during San Fran's previous foray into Mexico, hauling in a pair of touchdowns in the aforementioned win against the Cardinals.

-- Grant Gordon