Football never actually sleeps. We pretend it does during those long months in May and June, but the truth is, the NFL calendar is a monster that just keeps eating. If you're wondering when is the first game of the 2025 nfl season, you aren't alone—the countdown basically starts the second the confetti hits the grass at the Super Bowl.
The official kickoff for the 2025 NFL regular season was Thursday, September 4, 2025.
It wasn't just any game, though. The league has this tradition of letting the reigning Super Bowl champs host the opener, and in 2025, that meant all eyes were on Lincoln Financial Field. The Philadelphia Eagles, coming off their Super Bowl LIX victory, got the honors. And because the NFL loves drama, they didn't give the Eagles a "gimme" game. They scheduled the Dallas Cowboys.
The 2025 NFL Kickoff: Why This Date Matters
Most people focus on the Sunday slate, but the real fireworks happen on that first Thursday. The NFL Kickoff Game has become a de facto national holiday for sports bettors and fantasy managers. On September 4, 2025, at 8:20 p.m. ET, the Eagles and Cowboys renewed one of the most bitter rivalries in professional sports.
NBC and Peacock handled the broadcast, which has become the standard for these high-profile openers.
If you missed the actual score, the Eagles managed to defend their home turf with a 24-20 win over Dallas. It’s kinda wild when you think about it—the Eagles had swept the Cowboys in 2024, including a massive 41-7 blowout that clinched the NFC East. Dallas came into the 2025 opener looking for blood, but Jalen Hurts and company held them off just long enough to start their title defense with a "W."
More Than Just a Thursday Night Game
The first week of the 2025 season was actually a weird one. Usually, we get the Thursday game and then a massive dump of games on Sunday. But 2025 decided to be different.
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The NFL expanded its global footprint even further. On Friday, September 5, just one day after the Eagles-Cowboys clash, the league headed to São Paulo, Brazil. This was the second-ever regular-season game in South America. The Kansas City Chiefs took on the Los Angeles Chargers at Corinthians Arena.
It was a historic moment because it was the first NFL game to be streamed live and for free in its entirety exclusively on YouTube. The Chargers actually pulled off a 27-21 upset there, which set a chaotic tone for the rest of the month.
When Is the First Game of the 2025 NFL Season for My Team?
While the Eagles and Cowboys grabbed the Thursday headlines, the rest of the league had to wait until Sunday, September 7, to get their hands dirty. The Sunday 1:00 p.m. ET window is where the "real" football feel kicks in for most fans.
Here is how that opening Sunday looked for a few key matchups:
- Baltimore Ravens at Buffalo Bills: This was the Sunday Night Football headliner on NBC. A massive rematch of the previous year's AFC Divisional round. Josh Allen and the Bills edged out a 41-40 thriller.
- Detroit Lions at Green Bay Packers: A classic NFC North brawl in the late afternoon window (4:25 p.m. ET on CBS). Green Bay took this one 27-13.
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons: A 1:00 p.m. FOX game that saw Tampa Bay squeak out a 23-20 victory.
The week finally wrapped up on Monday, September 8. The Minnesota Vikings traveled to Soldier Field to face the Chicago Bears on ESPN/ABC. Minnesota won that one 27-24, proving that the NFC North was going to be a nightmare for everyone involved in 2025.
The Hall of Fame Game "Tease"
Technically, if you're a purist, the "first" game isn't in September. It's in July. The Pro Football Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, is the actual start of the preseason. In 2025, that game happened on July 31.
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The Detroit Lions faced off against the Los Angeles Chargers at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.
Does it count? To your fantasy record, no. To a degenerate fan who has been starving for football since February? Absolutely. It’s the first time we see the jerseys under the lights, even if the starters are mostly wearing headsets on the sidelines.
How the NFL Schedule is Actually Built
The league doesn't just pull these dates out of a hat. The 2025 schedule was officially released on Wednesday, May 14, 2025. This has become a massive TV event in itself. Mike North, the NFL’s vice president of broadcast planning, has pushed the release to May every year since the 2020 COVID season.
They use a complex algorithm powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS) to figure out travel, stadium availability, and—most importantly—television ratings.
The NFL’s 106th season featured 17 regular-season games and three preseason games for each team. That 18-week grind is designed to keep us engaged until the very end. The 2025 regular season eventually concluded on January 4, 2026, leading right into the playoffs we’re seeing now.
International Takeover in 2025
If you feel like the NFL is everywhere, it’s because it is. Beyond the Brazil game, the 2025 season hit three brand-new cities: Berlin, Dublin, and Madrid.
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The Minnesota Vikings were the kings of the international travel, playing the Pittsburgh Steelers in Dublin on September 28 and then the Cleveland Browns in London just a week later on October 5. Honestly, the jet lag alone should be a stat in fantasy football.
Actionable Insights for the Next Season
If you're planning for the 2026 season based on what happened in 2025, keep these patterns in mind. The NFL almost always releases the schedule the second week of May. Expect the 2026 kickoff to be Thursday, September 10, 2026.
Keep an eye on the Super Bowl winner. Whoever lifts the trophy in February 2026 will almost certainly host that Thursday night opener. If you're planning a trip to an international game, book your flights the day the schedule drops in May. Those tickets for games in places like Madrid or Berlin sell out in minutes, and prices triple by August.
Check your local listings or streaming apps like Peacock and YouTube early. The league is moving more games to exclusive streaming platforms every year. If you don't have your logins sorted by the time the first game rolls around, you're going to be staring at a "Log In" screen while your rival scores a touchdown.
The 2025 season started with a bang in Philadelphia, and it set the stage for one of the most competitive years in recent memory. Whether you were there for the Eagles' opening win or the Chargers' victory in Brazil, the first week remains the high point of the sports calendar.