NFL season kicks off with Super Bowl rematch between the Patriots and the Seahawks

SEATTLE (NBC, KYMA) - In just a few hours, the NFL will kick off a new season, and the first match-up is enticing as it's a Super Bowl rematch between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks.

The Seahawks will raise their second Super Bowl championship banner, and then they will take on the team they beat back in February to win that banner: the Patriots.

At Lumen Field Tuesday, crews were busy putting final paint touches on the field, checking the cameras, and going through all the last-minute preparations to get ready for this very first football broadcast of the NFL season.

It's a season that's going to run all the way to Valentine's Day for the Super Bowl in 2027. It's also a season that's going to feature nine international games starting Thursday night in Melbourne, Australia, where the San Francisco 49ers will take on the Los Angeles Rams.

There will be games in seven different countries this season, part of a big international push for the NFL, but for Wednesday night, all the attention is here in Seattle, where the Seahawks will take on the Patriots to open the NFL season.