For the first time in 14 years, and just the second time since 1948, the NFL will begin its new season on a Wednesday, when the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks square off in a Super Bowl LX rematch. It's effectively a tradition for the NFL to kick things off with Week 1 on the Thursday after Labor Day in September, but for the 2026 season, the league moved it up by one day.
While you're unlikely to find many (if any) NFL fans upset that football's return is coming earlier, the question of "why" is still interesting. Back in 2012, the first game of the season was moved up by one day to avoid a conflict with then-President Barack Obama's re-election acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention. This time, though, it has to do
with the NFL's rapidly growing International Series of games.
Why the 2026 NFL season begins on Wednesday instead of Thursday
One day after the Patriots and Seahawks square off, the NFL will play its first regular-season game in Australia, when the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams meet at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. That game will air at 8:35 p.m. ET on Thursday, allowing the NFL to comply with federal laws prohibiting professional games on Friday nights and all day Saturday that conflict with high school and college football. This goes into effect beginning with the second Friday in September.
That provision in the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 restricting the start time of NFL games, paired with how late Labor Day is this year, meant the league couldn't hold either the Patriots vs. Seahawks or the 49ers vs. Rams in Australia on Friday, as The Athletic explained.
In turn, things were bumped up by a day for Week 1, leaving the Patriots and Seahawks to kick things off on Wednesday, and the 49ers vs. Rams to start on Thursday night for United States viewers, and around 10:35 a.m. Australian time.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Why does NFL 2026 season start on Wednesday night and not Thursday?
