Rams deny picking 49ers for NFL's Melbourne debut — SkimNews
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- NFL is debuting in Australia with a 49ers-Rams matchup at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Thursday (8:35 p.m. ET, Netflix) — a roughly 8,000-mile, 16-hour flight across the international dateline that opens a multiyear Australian agreement.
- Rams president Kevin Demoff rejected 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan's theory that Los Angeles chose San Francisco to keep 49ers fans out of SoFi Stadium, saying flatly: "We did not select the Niners at all" — the league pursued the 49ers because they're Australia's most popular team by league data.
- NFL Australia GM Charlotte Offord said Melbourne beat Sydney and Perth on walkability and the MCG — the Southern Hemisphere's largest stadium at 100,000-plus capacity — while Australian NFL fans surged 54% from 5.7 million to 8.8 million between 2022 and 2025.
- The Rams had Australia as one of seven Global Markets Program countries and made 15 visits since 2022, but originally wanted to host the Chiefs in Week 1; the league refused after Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL in mid-December, leaving the 49ers, Cowboys and Cardinals as the only options.
- 49ers CEO Al Guido said the team "didn't have a choice in the matter" on Australia, even as San Francisco separately lobbied to return to Mexico City's renovated Estadio Azteca in 2026, where the 49ers last played internationally in 2022.
- The Cowboys were sent to Rio de Janeiro in Week 3 against the Ravens as part of the same slate — marking the NFL's debut in Brazil and Dallas' first international home game — after the Seahawks won the Super Bowl and the right to host the league opener.
Why it matters: The league's Australia debut — built on a 54% Australian fanbase surge from 5.7M to 8.8M (2022-2025) — exposes how little teams actually decide about international games: the 49ers' CEO admitted they "didn't have a choice" on Melbourne, and the Rams were denied their preferred Chiefs opener after Patrick Mahomes's ACL tear. With the December 2023 league vote requiring every team to host internationally every four years, marquee matchups are now assembled over teams rather than by them.
Ask SkimNews
