Football
49ers take over Australia ahead of game against Rams
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The first international game of the 2026 NFL season has arrived, as the 49ers take on the Rams in Melbourne.
San Francisco arrived in Australia last Friday to acclimatize to the environment, contrary to Los Angeles, which arrived down under last night.
While the Niners have been in Melbourne, they have gained an Aussie fan base despite the Rams being the designated home team.
San Francisco's tour around Melbourne
Over the past week, San Francisco's players have made an appearance at an AFL game, visited schools,  hospitals, and enjoyed the Australian lifestyle.
Stars such as Fred Warner and George Kittle have been very outspoken about how much they've enjoyed this experience and their love for the country.
 Warner has been really thankful for the amount of support the Niners always receive overseas.
"The hope is that it's a sea of red," said Warner.
"That's what the hope always is. The faithful, in my opinion, are the best fans in the world. We always travel no matter the situation, where we're going, whether it's in the states, out of the states. They've always shown love."
Among other activities, it's been a great experience for Australian NFL fans, who, because of the distance, don't always get to experience NFL-related stuff at regular hours.
With 12,641 kilometres of distance, San Francisco is the closest NFL team to Melbourne.
Last updates before kick-off
The 49ers announced that George Kittle and Nick Bosa will be available for today's game, and Fred Warner will make his long-awaited comeback after suffering a broken ankle in Week 6 last year.
By the time the game kicks off, Los Angeles will have arrived in Australia a little more than 24 hours ago, taking the reverse approach to what the Niners did to deal with the jet lag.
Aaron Donald did not make the trip to Melbourne, so there will be another week of waiting to see the three-time DPOY back on the field after three years of retirement.
However, Myles Garrett will make his debut with the Rams, in a defense that looks like it's going to be unstoppable this season.
Kevin Terrell / Stringer
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