The San Francisco 49ers are preparing for what could be one of their toughest travel schedules in recent memory. But general manager John Lynch says the NFL has assured the team it will try to ease some of that burden. Still, the added miles don’t seem to be bothering Lynch much, especially when it comes to the 49ers’ highly anticipated Week 1 showdown against the Los Angeles Rams at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground on September 10, 2026.

In fact, Lynch delivered a confident and defiant message toward the Rams, making it clear San Francisco has no intention of using travel as an excuse.

“We’re gonna go kick a–, and we’ll take over whatever the hell that stadium’s name is,” John Lynch said during an appearance on the Tom Tolbert Show.

Apparently, the 49ers are set for two international games during the 2026 NFL season. But not all of those trips come with the same level of difficulty. Their game in Mexico City is considered fairly manageable. In fact, the travel is shorter than some of the team’s regular East Coast road trips.

Australia, however, is a completely different story.

The 49ers’ Week 1 clash against the Rams will come with a massive travel undertaking. The round-trip journey to Australia is expected to cover more miles than 10 NFL teams will travel throughout their entire 2026 season combined. That alone very well explains Lynch’s charged up response.

During a recent appearance on The Tom Tolbert Show, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch opened up about the team’s demanding 2026 travel schedule. Shanahan once again made it clear that he isn’t thrilled about the situation, voicing his frustration not only with the extensive travel involved but also with the Los Angeles Rams reportedly requesting the 49ers as their opponent for the Week 1 international showdown in Australia.

When Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan appeared at The Tom Tolbert Show, both of them opened up about the team’s demanding 2026 travel schedule. Shanahan, in particular, once again voiced that he isn’t thrilled about the situation. His frustration is not only with the extensive travel involved but also with the Rams reportedly requesting the 49ers as their opponent for the Week 1 international showdown in Australia.

“We only get three close fights, whether it’s Seattle, Arizona, and L.A.,” Shanahan said. “So to get one of those taken away is tough, just when you travel a lot—especially when it’s 19 hours away on an airplane. That’s not like a small flight. So, that stuff adds up. But no, I love our fans taking over SoFi. That’s awesome. That’s a cool thing. And I get why the Rams don’t want that. So it is what it is. I mean, it’s cool to play outside the country. It’s cool to be in a different stadium. It’s cool when we played in Mexico City. All that stuff’s cool.”

These concerns from Kyle Shanahan stem from the tough rivalry shared by the two as some of the best teams across the league over the last few years. Looking at all-time numbers, San Francisco is leading in the all-time series 79-72-3 across 154 matchups. The Niners maintained their dominance from 2019 to 2023 by clinching nine straight regular-season matchups.

Over the last two seasons, Los Angeles has secured bragging rights by clinching victories in four of the last five matchups. With both teams splitting the regular-season series last year, the 2026 season opener will be an incredible opportunity to witness who sets the tone for this new league.

However, for the Niners, winning from the get-go will be paramount in this new league year, as an NFL insider believes the future of Shanahan and Lynch could face a cloud of uncertainty if they struggle to win the Big Game this time around.

Shanahan & Lynch’s 49ers future hangs in the balance, NFL insider

The Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch duo has been a godsend for the 49ers, with the duo gradually rebuilding San Francisco into a contender out of the toughest division in the league. However, despite this success, the Niners have failed to bring home the elusive Lombardi Trophy since last winning the Super Bowl in 1995.

Hence, Sports Illustrated’s Grant Cohn speculated that the 2026 season could turn out to be a make-or-break year for Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch, as the York family, the Niners’ owners, will grow frustrated with just making deep runs in the postseason instead of winning the Super Bowl.

“I feel like at a certain point the Yorks have to say, ‘it’s been nice, but we really can’t get over the hump.’ And I don’t know what’s going to happen this year, but I think there’s a lot of pressure on these guys,” Sports Illustrated’s Grant Cohn theorized on the 49ers Collective podcast. “I think if they make it to the NFC Championship game, they’ll get extensions. But if they don’t, it’ll be like, ‘man, it’s been a few years; you’re not getting better.”

The 49ers and Rams are set for a huge Week 1 matchup in Australia, and both sides have a lot at stake in it. San Francisco’s front office is ready to compete despite the travel challenges, and with jobs potentially on the line, Shanahan and Lynch have every reason to come out swinging from the very first game.