Strap in for “Wednesday Night Football” because it’s reportedly coming to NBC in September. The first game of the 2026 NFL season will take place Wednesday, Sept. 9, The Wall Street Journal’s Joe Flint reported Tuesday.
The league traditionally kicks off its season on a Thursday, but the NFL’s first-ever game in Australia and the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 are at the root of the change, per Forbes.
Melbourne will be the site of an NFC West showdown between the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams. That game is set for Thursday, Sept. 10, per Flint.
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Another team from that division, the Seattle Seahawks, is expected to headline the Wednesday night matchup on NBC, as the reigning Super Bowl champion typically hosts the first game of the NFL season.
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As for why the international game can’t be held on a Friday — like it has been in Brazil each of the past two seasons — that’s where the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 comes into play.
The Act prevents the NFL from broadcasting games on Friday or Saturday from the second Friday in September until the second Saturday in December. If you’re wondering about the NFL’s Black Friday games, those begin in the afternoon — prime time is reserved for high school football on Fridays in that restriction period — and therefore are absolved from violation.
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Here’s where things get tricky.
In 2026, Labor Day is on Sept. 7. The NFL season starts the week after Labor Day, meaning the first Friday of the season is that second Friday in September, or Sept. 11.
With the Act already in play, which it wasn’t at the time of the games in Brazil in 2024 and 2025, a Friday game is off the table for Week 1 this time around.
A Week 1 Wednesday game has happened before. The 2012 league opener occurred on Wednesday, Sept. 5, and saw the New York Giants host the Dallas Cowboys.
The game was moved so that it didn’t conflict with Democratic National Convention coverage, per Forbes.
