The Los Angeles Rams and the San Francisco 49ers will meet at the famed Melbourne Cricket Ground next week in what the NFL intends to be the first of many regular-season games in front of its growing Australian fan base.
The league also is determined to play those games at Australia's biggest stadium during the first week of the NFL's regular season — even with a major scheduling problem obstructing that goal in 2027.
The 100,000-seat MCG could be unavailable to the NFL at this time next year because it will be occupied by the Australian Football League postseason, which begins in early September. The AFL accommodated the NFL this year, but doesn't intend to do the same in 2027, according to Australian media reports.
Without going into details, NFL executive vice president Peter O'Reilly downplayed the potential for disruption caused by this scheduling conflict during a conference call Wednesday to highlight the league's upcoming Australian debut.
"We have great partners in the MCG and the AFL, and I know we'll work to a good solution there that allows the NFL to continue to play in Australia on an ongoing basis," O'Reilly said.

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