NFL to Visit Seven Countries as Part of Record Slate of International Games

Melbourne, Rio de Janeiro, London, Paris, Madrid, Munich and Mexico City will all host games in 2026

Posted On: May 18, 2026 By : Paul Stevens

The National Football League is going international like never before this season.

The NFL has unveiled its 2026 International Games schedule, which includes a record-breaking nine games played across four continents, seven countries and eight stadiums next season.

Related Stories

Melbourne (Australia), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), London (U.K.), Paris (France), Madrid (Spain), Munich (Germany) and Mexico City (Mexico) will all host games in 2026 as the league continues to accelerate its global expansion plans.

“The 2026 NFL season will feature our most expansive and ambitious international slate yet,” said Peter O’Reilly, NFL executive vice president of club business, major events and international. “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.”

The international slate will get underway in Melbourne, Australia, on September 10, as the San Francisco 49ers face the Los Angeles Rams, led by quarterback and reigning league MVP Matthew Stafford, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. It will mark the NFL’s first regular-season game Down Under.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, follows with the Baltimore Ravens taking on the Dallas Cowboys on September 27, at the Maracanã Stadium. It will be the third regular-season game hosted in Brazil and a first for Rio, following two previous games in São Paulo.

London will host three consecutive games in the 2026 NFL season, taking the total number of regular-season games played in the U.K. since 2007 to 45. Two games will be played at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (October 4 and 11) and one at Wembley Stadium (October 18).

The first regular-season matchup in France will be held at the Stade de France in Paris on October 25, with the Pittsburgh Steelers facing off against the New Orleans Saints.

On November 8, Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu Stadium will host an NFL game for a second consecutive season, this time between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Atlanta Falcons.

The final European game of the season will be staged on November 15 at FC Bayern Munich Arena in Munich, Germany, as the New England Patriots square off against the Detroit Lions.

The international slate will conclude in Mexico City, where the Minnesota Vikings will play the San Francisco 49ers at Estadio Banorte on November 22. That will mark the NFL’s first game in Mexico since 2022 and will be the sixth regular-season game hosted in the country since 2005.

To date, 62 regular-season NFL games have been played outside of the United States, in London, Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Madrid, Dublin, São Paulo, Mexico City and Toronto as host cities.

2026 NFL International Games Slate

September 10 (Week One): San Francisco 49ers vs. Los Angeles Rams at Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia
September 27 (Week Three): Baltimore Ravens vs. Dallas Cowboys at Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
October 4 (Week Four): Indianapolis Colts vs. Washington Commanders at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK
October 11 (Week Five): Philadelphia Eagles vs. Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK
October 18 (Week Six): Houston Texans vs. Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium, London, UK
October 25 (Week Seven): Pittsburgh Steelers vs. New Orleans at Stade de France, Paris, France
November 8 (Week Nine): Cincinnati Bengals vs. Atlanta Falcons at Bernabéu Stadium, Madrid, Spain
November 15 (Week 10): New England Patriots vs. Detroit Lions at Bayern Munich Arena, Munich, Germany
November 22 (Week 11): Minnesota Vikings vs. San Francisco 49ers at Estadio Banorte, Mexico City, Mexico

NFL Regular-Season Schedule

The full 2026 NFL Schedule powered by AWS has also been revealed. The season kicks off on September 9 with the same teams that concluded last season, with New England Patriots visiting the Seattle Seahawks in a rematch of Super Bowl LX, which was won by Seattle. The regular season will conclude in January.

In some notable highlights, the NFL season opener will be on a Wednesday for the first time since 2012, while the league’s first Thanksgiving Eve game will be played on November 25 when the Green Bay Packers visit the Los Angeles Rams.

Super Bowl LXI will be played on February 14, 2027, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. It will be the second time that the stadium has hosted the big game itself, after Super Bowl LVI in 2022, and will mark the latest date an NFL season has ever ended.

General ticket on‑sale information will be confirmed at a later date.

Meanwhile, fans can find ticketing information for all NFL games at this link.

Posted in: Football, Hosts & Suppliers, Latest News, NFL, Sites & Venues, Sports Organizations, Sports Venues