The first game of the 2023 NFL regular season was the Kickoff Game on Thursday, September 7, 2023, when the Kansas City Chiefs hosted the Detroit Lions in Kansas City, with kickoff at 8:20 p.m. ET.

When Is the First NFL Game 2023?

Quick Scoop

If you’re searching “when is the first nfl game 2023” , you’re looking for the official start of the 2023 NFL regular season, not the preseason or playoffs. That start is marked by the NFL Kickoff Game, a primetime tradition that launches the season on a Thursday night.

  • Date: Thursday, September 7, 2023.
  • Matchup: Detroit Lions vs. Kansas City Chiefs.
  • Location: GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri.
  • Time: Coverage from around 7:00 p.m. ET, kickoff at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC.

In forum-style discussions, fans often just say: “Season starts when the Chiefs host the Lions on Sept 7, 2023.”

Mini Sections

1. Why That Game Matters

The NFL uses the defending Super Bowl champion to host the first regular- season game in primetime, turning it into a mini-event with concerts, pregame shows, and tons of hype. In 2023, that meant Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs raising their banner at home before facing an up-and-coming Lions team that had become a trendy pick in “breakout” discussions.

This game doesn’t just answer “when is the first nfl game 2023” – it signals the official end of the long offseason that runs from February after the Super Bowl to early September.

2. Quick Facts List

  1. First regular-season game: NFL Kickoff Game.
  1. Season: 2023 NFL regular season (the league’s 104th season).
  1. Date: September 7, 2023.
  1. Teams: Detroit Lions at Kansas City Chiefs.
  1. Stadium: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City.
  1. Time: 8:20 p.m. ET kickoff (night game).
  1. Broadcast: NBC, with streaming on Peacock.

3. Extra Context & “Latest News” Angle

Even though the 2023 season is now complete, people still search “when is the first nfl game 2023” when they’re:

  • Rewatching highlights or full-game replays.
  • Looking up historical schedules or betting records.
  • Joining forum debates about whether Lions–Chiefs was a sign of Detroit’s rise or just a one-off upset.

The broader 2023 season ran from that September 7 opener through Week 18 finishing on January 7, 2024, and ultimately ended with the Chiefs winning Super Bowl LVIII.

4. Simple HTML Table (Game Snapshot)

Since you requested tables as HTML, here’s a compact snapshot of the first game of the 2023 NFL season:

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Item</th>
      <th>Details</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Season</td>
      <td>2023 NFL regular season (104th NFL season)[web:2][web:7]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>First game date</td>
      <td>Thursday, September 7, 2023[web:1][web:5][web:7][web:9]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Matchup</td>
      <td>Detroit Lions at Kansas City Chiefs[web:1][web:3][web:5][web:7][web:9]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Stadium</td>
      <td>GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri[web:3][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Kickoff time</td>
      <td>8:20 p.m. ET (pregame coverage from around 7:00 p.m. ET)[web:1][web:3][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>TV / Streaming</td>
      <td>NBC (TV), Peacock (streaming)[web:3][web:5]</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

5. TL;DR

The answer to “when is the first nfl game 2023” is: Thursday night, September 7, 2023 – Detroit Lions at Kansas City Chiefs, 8:20 p.m. ET in Kansas City on NBC.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.