The NFL has been steadily increasing the size of its footprint, not just globally, but domestically as well. The league has encroached on Saturdays in the tail end of the season, forcing the College Football Playoff to schedule around it, and is even dominating Christmas Day, which used to belong to the NBA.
Under league commissioner Roger Goodell, over the length of a full season, the NFL now broadcasts games on Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays. Now, it’s adding another day of the week and starting the 2026 campaign on a Wednesday night, per the Wall Street Journal’s Joe Flint.
“Some small NFL TV news. The first game of the regular season will be on Wednesday night on NBC (vs usual Thursday). The Melbourne game will be on Thursday — platform TBD. NFL can’t do a Friday game this year on opening week, hence the tweaks,” Flint reported on Tuesday.
> Some small NFL TV news. The first game of the regular season will be on Wednesday night on NBC (vs usual Thursday). The Melbourne game will be on Thursday — platform TBD. NFL can't do a Friday game this year on opening week, hence the tweaks.
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> — Joe Flint (@JBFlint) [March 17, 2026](https://twitter.com/JBFlint/status/2033931277393662191?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
Fans reacted to the news on social media.
“Wednesday Night Win is going to be nice!” one Seahawks fan wrote on Twitter.
“I def got a feeling it’s gonna be Bears vs Seahawks on that Wednesday night,” a Bears fan added.
“This will be the new norm. And in a few years, when they can do Friday games again, we’ll have games on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday night,” someone else added.
It’ll be interesting to see how Goodell continues to expand the NFL’s reach in the coming years.