The Most Significant 49ers Revenge Game on the 2026 Schedule

Out of all the games on the San Francisco 49ers' 2026 schedule, one stands out above the rest.

They may be traveling across the globe for Week 1 against the Los Angeles Rams, hosting the Minnesota Vikings in Mexico City in Week 11, and facing several notorious rivals along the way.

But one matchup stands above the rest: a significant revenge game in which the 49ers will aim to finally come out on top.

A matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs awaits

Dec 22, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan leaves the field after the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Right after Christmas, San Francisco will head to Missouri to face the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 16, closing out the calendar year before returning to the West Coast to finish the season by hosting the Philadelphia Eagles and traveling to Arizona to face the Cardinals.

This is the ultimate revenge opportunity for the 49ers. No matter how you look at it, it feels like a must-win game, with San Francisco expected to be firmly in the middle of the playoff race by that stage of the season. It is also a crucial matchup against a team that recent history has consistently gone against them.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan’s record against the Chiefs is far from favorable. He is 0-5, with the most painful defeats coming in the Super Bowl losses in February 2020 and 2024. The 49ers blew a 10-point lead in the first meeting, while confusion over the NFL’s overtime rules arguably hurt their momentum in the latter defeat.

San Francisco’s regular-season defeats to Kansas have also been emphatic, losing 38-27 in September 2018 and 44-23 in October 2022. More recently, the 49ers suffered a 28-18 defeat in October 2024, a game that was ultimately defined by missed opportunities and the significant injury to Brandon Aiyuk, who has not played a snap since.

The Chiefs have not looked like the unstoppable force they once were over the last couple of seasons. Patrick Mahomes will likely be fully recovered from his ACL injury by then, but questions still remain around the roster depth and whether Kansas City’s dynasty can truly continue at the same level.

For the 49ers, this feels like their best opportunity since the second Super Bowl defeat to finally get over the hump. San Francisco’s core remains largely intact, the roster is still stacked with elite talent on both sides of the ball, and the emotional scars from previous defeats against Kansas City have not faded.

Since many are once again predicting them to finish only third in their own division, a victory that few expect because of the recent history between the teams would be exactly the type of statement win the 49ers need to prove they can finally overcome the side that has repeatedly denied them.

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