The Dallas Cowboys are the NFL’s most famous brand across the globe, so it only makes sense they’ll open the 2026 regular season to a worldwide audience — and make NFL history in the process.
The Cowboys announced on Thursday that they will open the season as part of the NFL International Series with the NFL’s first game in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, wit their opponent still to be determined.
“The ‘Boys are Brazil bound,” the Cowboys wrote on their official X account.
“The Cowboys will play the NFL’s first-ever regular-season game next season in Rio de Janeiro,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter wrote on X.
“It’s a home game the Cowboys are giving up at AT&T Stadium,” ESPN’s Todd Archer wrote on X. “Potential opponents (non NFC East): Cardinals, Jaguars, Niners, Titans, Buccaneers, Ravens. Schedule comes out in the spring.”
The Cowboys have been one of the NFL teams who have been extremely reluctant to give up home games to play overseas. Dallas has only played in the NFL International Series once, in a 31-17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars at London’s Wembley Stadium in 2014.
The Cowboys will play at Rio’s famed Maracana Stadium, which has a listed capacity of 78,838 and is the home stadium to Brazilian soccer clubs Flamengo and Fluminese.
The Cowboys have played in Mexico City 3 times, but those were all preseason games.
NFL International Series Continues to Expand
The Cowboys won’t be the only team making history by going overseas in 2026 — the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers will play the NFL’s first regular season game in Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which has a listed capacity of round 100,000. That’s over 30,000 more than where the 49ers’ play home games at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, which is where Super Bowl LX will be played on February 8.
The New Orleans Saints will also become the first NFL team to play a regular-season game in France in 2026, when they play an opponent TBD at Stade de France.
The NFL expanded to Ireland in 2025 with a game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings in Dublin. They also played in Spain for the first time with a game between the Miami Dolphins and Washington Commanders in Madrid.
Cowboys Only NFL Team With 1 International Game
The Cowboys are actually the only NFL team with just 1 international game on its resume.
There is one NFL team that has played overseas more than any other. The Jaguars have played overseas an incredible 14 times, with 12 of those games in London.
The Jaguars have played so much in London over the years that the team was even rumored to be contemplating a move to London before they announced they were building a new stadium , which is scheduled to open in 2028.
Dallas in Ugly Stretch of Playoff Misses
It might be good for the Cowboys to mix things up in terms of their schedule. After finishing 12-5 for 3 consecutive seasons from 2021 to 2023, Dallas has consecutive losing seasons and has missed the playoffs the last 2 years.
“The Rio game will be played at the Maracanã Stadium,” Schefter wrote. “The game in Rio will be part of an NFL record nine international games in 2026 across four continents, seven countries and eight stadiums.”
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