NFL could be sending a Week 1 game to Brazil as part of the 2024 schedule, per report

The NFL’s Week 1 schedule could have a totally different look in 2024 and that’s because the league is considering the possibility of doing some things that it’s never done before. 

The big one is that the NFL might schedule an international game for the opening week of the season for the first time ever. According to NBC Sports, the NFL is mulling over the possibility of putting a game in Brazil in Week 1. 

Although it might not happen in the opening week, the South American country will definitely be hosting a game in 2024 after the NFL’s 32 owners voted last week to approve Brazil as a host country. The game will be played in the city of São Paulo at the Corinthians Arena, which served as a venue for both the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympic Games. 

With the game being played so far away — São Paulo would be a 10 to 13 hour flight for most NFL teams — the league is also considering implementing another new change for Week 1: There might be a game played on Friday or Saturday. 

According to NBC, if the NFL does decide to let Brazil host a game in Week 1, there’s a chance the game could be played on a Thursday as part of an opening night doubleheader. 

The NFL also has the option of putting the game on a Friday or Saturday this year, which doesn’t always happen. Under the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, the league isn’t allowed to televise any games on Friday or Saturday from the second weekend in September through the second weekend in December (Those two days have been earmarked for high school and college football). 

The NFL always kicks off the first Thursday after Labor Day and with that holiday on Sept. 2 in 2024, that opens the door for the NFL to play on Friday (Sept. 6) or Saturday (Sept. 7) in Week 1, which is something the league is seriously considering for the Brazil game. 

If the NFL goes with a Friday game, it will mark the first time since 1970 that the league has held a Friday game in the opening week of the season. If there’s a Saturday game in Week 1, that will mark the first time since 2004 that the NFL has played a game on that day during the opening week. A Titans-Dolphins game got moved to Saturday due to the threat of bad weather in 2004, so if we’re talking about a game that the NFL actually scheduled, then we haven’t seen a Saturday game in Week 1 since 1983. 

As for who might play in the game, the Dolphins were awarded international home marketing rights to Brazil in 2021, so they would be an obvious option. However, the NFC’s 16 teams will be getting nine home games in 2024, so it would probably make more sense for an NFC team to host the game. If that happens, the Dolphins are scheduled to play three NFC teams on the road next season: Rams, Seahawks and the NFC North team that finishes in the same spot as them in the standings. On the other hand, the NFL could decide to keep the Dolphins at home and let two other teams play in Brazil. 

Although things are still up in the air right now, it seems pretty clear that the NFL is looking to start the 2024 season with an unprecedented opening week.