The San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams are one of the top rivalries in the NFC West — and the entire NFL.
When the two teams play one another, fans can usually expect a high-scoring, fast-paced, offensive show featuring two of the top quarterbacks in the league in Brock Purday and Matthew Stafford.
So, it’s easy to see why the NFL chose both teams to play each other in the 2026 season opener on a global stage in Melbourne, Australia — the first-ever NFL game to be played in the country.
Fans Frustrated With 49ers vs. Rams Ticket Situation
With the 49ers and Rams set to make NFL history on Sept. 11, demand for tickets is understandably high.
But according to Hannah Kennelly of the Sydney Morning Herald, because so many people want tickets to the event, prices have not only skyrocketed but they’re also increasingly difficult to secure.
“Tickets to the highly anticipated first NFL game in Australia have nearly sold out, but frustrated fans say they experienced long waits and have complained of sky-high pricing for seats at the MCG with restricted views,” Kennelly wrote.
“The cheapest tickets at $95 per person for standing room, and $140 for the bottom row, sold out almost immediately on Ticketmaster on Wednesday for the September 11 game, with many punters complaining they had next to no chance of securing them.”
Buzz Mounting for NFL’s Australian Debut
NFL Australia reported that more than 151,000 people registered interest in purchasing tickets for the Week 1 game, which will be held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which has a maximum capacity of 100,024 seats.
Kennelly also wrote that most seats sold out within the first 26 minutes of going on sale, and the only seats left were priced in the $560-$630 range.
U.S.-based fans wanting to buy tickets could only find VIP-level tickets starting at $1,750, according to Front Office Sports.
Fans trying to find tickets on Ticketmaster also ran into some blips too. Fans reported long wait times in the queue, and others claim they were booted out of system while trying to purchase tickets.
49ers Aren’t Thrilled to be Playing Overseas
Head coach Kyle Shanahan hasn’t been shy about his unhappiness the 49ers have to travel so far away to play a game, especially one against a division rival that could have significant bearing on the playoffs.
“I was so fired up [when I heard],” Shanahan said with a great deal of sarcasm. “That was our goal to go 19 hours away to play a game. … We’ll deal with it. And I think there’s [nine] international games. We’ve got two of them, so we’re fired up about that.
“… I don’t see any pro [for us]. It’s cool for the league to play globally. I think that’s awesome. But as far as the team doing it, no, there’s not much benefit to it. Sometimes it’s nice to get a bye week after but doesn’t happen in Week 1.”
Shanahan also revealed that he believes the NFL and the Rams conspired against San Francisco because the team’s fans often over run the L.A. fans when the teams play at SoFi Stadium, which some have started referring to as “Levi’s South” because of the large number of 49ers fans who make the trip for the game.
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