49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has made clear this offseason that [he doesn’t think his team benefits](https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/kyle-shanahan-not-much-benefit-to-starting-2026-season-with-australia-game) from opening the season in Australia. He made that point again after Thursday night’s preseason finale.
The 49ers-Rams game on Thursday, September 10, is a designated Rams home game, but Shanahan says the 49ers’ fan base always turns out so well in Los Angeles that they view that as a home game, and he’d take that over an extremely long road trip to Australia.
“I wish we played them here, for what we usually look at as a home game, but we’ll see how it is in Australia,” Shanahan said. “We’ll play the Rams wherever. Going there, it is what it is, but it’s going to be a fun atmosphere and always when we play the Rams it’s a big, tough game, so, looking forward to it.”
Rams coach Sean McVay also said after his team’s preseason finale on Thursday night that the schedule is a challenge, but he said that’s just how the NFL scheduled his team this season.
“It’s a little bit different, but we’ll have a unique schedule in general, just based on, it seems like we play every day of the week this year,” McVay said. “So that won’t be an excuse.”