Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams’ upcoming historic matchup against the San Francisco 49ers to begin their respective 2026 regular-season slates has no shortage of storylines, and the NFL just added another.
News of the date, time, and location has long been revealed, along with the fact that the two NFC West rivals will face off.
This latest update is most significant for fans.
NFL Adds New Wrinkle to 49ers-Rams in Australia
GettyThe Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers will be part of a greater effort by the NFL.
McVay and the Rams will be part of the ever-growing number of games the NFL broadcasts on non-traditional platforms when they face the 49ers in Week 1.
“Netflix will air the NFL’s first-ever regular-season game from Australia during this year’s opening week, sources briefed on the move tell The Athletic,” The Athletic’s Dan Shanoff and Andrew Marchand wrote on May 7. “The streaming platform will air the Week 1 game between the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams on Thursday, Sept. 10, with kickoff at 8:35 p.m. ET from Melbourne Cricket Ground, the largest stadium in Australia.
“The early-season deal bookends Netflix’s current broadcast relationship with the NFL, which has included two games on Christmas Day the past two seasons and will continue in December 2026. Fox will air a third Christmas game in prime time.”
In February, Variety’s Tyler Aquilina detailed how “this year marks a turning point for the NFL’s streaming future” after the league experienced higher viewership during its stream of the Super Bowl on Tubi than in “several regular-season primetime games.”
Aquilina added that Tubi’s “simulcast also set an important precedent.”
“The NFL and its network partners will likely want to continue leveraging the cord-cutting audience — and attendant ad revenue — a free streamer can deliver,” Aquilina wrote.
“But the bigger story lies in the NFL’s evolving relationship with subscription streaming, starting with the fact that, beginning this year, no league content will be exclusively available on linear TV anymore.”
The Rams-49ers game figures to bring an intense rivalry to a burgeoning international audience.
Rams Called Out Over 49ers Request
GettySan Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has called out the Los Angeles Rams over the Australia game.
McVay and 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan will be able to sort through comments the latter made regarding the Rams’ request to host their division foe in this contest.
Shanahan even took a jab at the Rams’ homefield advantage, or lack thereof, at SoFi Stadium.
“I know for a fact they did, and that’s what’s so bothersome,” Shanhan said on “Pro Football Talk” in March. “So, hopefully, the league will do right and let us play the Rams in Mexico. Since we gotta go out of the country twice, and they requested us, I’m requesting them in Mexico. Not that that gives us an advantage. It’s just fair to make them go out of the country.”
“And I get that. That would suck to have to do a silent cadence and have our home game at their stadium. So, I get their ambitions. But they were awarded that. So, I’m just hoping we can request–I’d love them to come to Mexico.”
McVay and the Rams are 4-1 in their last five meetings against the 49ers overall. But they are also 8-11 against the 49ers during his tenure, including a postseason matchup in 2022.
They are 3-7 in LA, including a 2-4 mark there with Matthew Stafford.
Sean McVay Gets Opportunity to Confront John Lynch
GettySan Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch had an interesting reaction to the Los Angeles Rams’ draft choices.
McVay also has an unresolved matter to address with 49ers general manager John Lynch, who smiled when asked about the Rams drafting Ty Simpson 13th overall.
“I love John. I’d be interested to see what he’s smirking at there,” McVay told ESPN’s Kyle Brandt during the 2026 draft. “I got a lot of respect for Lynchy. I can’t wait to be able to see him and see if he was smirking at us.”
Given the context of the game, McVay figures to get his opportunity.
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