Is there any chance NFL, NFLPA will agree to 18-game season for 2026?

It continues to feel as if it is a matter of when and not if NFL team owners and the NFL Players Association will come to an agreement to shift to a schedule format of 18 regular-season games and two preseason contests for each team. 

However, it appears fans hoping the two sides will reach a deal for an expanded regular season this winter or spring may want to put such dreams to bed. 

NFL, NFLPA not close to agreeing to 18-game season

Per Andrew Peters of Bleacher Report, NFL Network's Judy Battista reported on Sunday afternoon that the league going to an 18-game regular season is "not a given." Battista added that such a change is likely "several seasons away."

Back in January, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft hinted that he knew "every team will go to 18 [regular-season games] and two" preseason games as part of a schedule that will also involve "every team every year" playing at least one meaningful contest outside of the United States. However, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell later said that getting to 18 regular-season games per campaign is "not something we assume will happen." 

During Super Bowl week, NFLPA interim executive director David White insisted that players have "no appetite" to add an 18th regular-season game to the calendar. That said, history suggests such a comment was simply a negotiating tactic. 

Per the terms of the collective bargaining agreement that expires in 2031, the union must agree to any expansion of the regular season. According to Rob Maaddi of the Associated Press, Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp said during Super Bowl week that "there’s going to have to be some talks about what makes" an 18-game schedule "worth it to the players." 

A second bye week, expanded rosters/practice squads, an increased share of league revenue and an altered schedule for the offseason program are among the requests expected to be made by the players whenever what Goodell referred to as "formal discussions" regarding an 18-game season get underway. 

Why the NFL "is going to push hard for" an 18-game regular season

"The league is going to push hard for 18 games, because that is linked to their desire to play 16 games internationally every season," Battista explained during her update, per Marca.

It sounds like something will have to change in a hurry for such a push to be successful before the 2026 NFL season schedule is released later this spring.