Ravens to open 2026 schedule in Indianapolis, play first NFL game in Rio

Baltimore’s 2026 football calendar will be shaped by one road trip to Indianapolis and one unprecedented detour to Rio de Janeiro, a stretch that could ripple through ticket demand, travel plans and game-day traffic downtown. The Ravens open Sept. 13 at the Indianapolis Colts, host the New Orleans Saints on Sept. 20, then face the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 27 in the NFL’s first regular-season game in Rio, at Maracanã Stadium.

That Brazil trip is more than a novelty. It will be the Ravens’ third international game in franchise history and their first outside London, and the league says the 2026 international slate will span a record nine games across four continents, seven countries and eight stadiums. The NFL also says Brazil has more than 36 million NFL fans and plans to bring at least three regular-season games to Rio over five years, a sign that Baltimore is stepping onto one of the league’s biggest global stages.

For Baltimore fans, the home dates are the part most likely to shape the city’s fall rhythm. The Sept. 20 opener at M&T Bank Stadium against New Orleans should set the first big early-season crowd of the year, while the Rio game will send plenty of attention to watch parties, sports bars and restaurants across the city as the 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff airs on CBS and Paramount+. By the time the Ravens return home for night games later in the season, the season will already have established its own tempo around Baltimore.

The primetime slate is heavy enough to keep the city’s football calendar moving well into winter. Baltimore will play at Atlanta in Week 5 on Sunday Night Football on NBC, host the Jacksonville Jaguars on Nov. 5 on Prime Video, host the Los Angeles Chargers on Nov. 16 on ESPN, and finish with a Dec. 31 road game at Cincinnati on Prime Video. The Ravens’ late-season home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers is still listed as TBD in Week 18, leaving a final twist for the end of the year.

The team’s schedule analysis suggests a manageable opening stretch. Baltimore will not face a team that made last year’s playoffs until November, and its first seven opponents, the Colts, Saints, Cowboys, Titans, Falcons, Browns and Bengals, combined for a 43-75-1 record last season. ESPN rated the Ravens’ schedule the 24th-hardest in the league, a middle-of-the-pack challenge that still leaves room for momentum as Jesse Minter begins his first season as head coach.