The NFL and the NFL Players Association are not expected to engage in formal negotiations to expand to an 18-game regular season until “at least early 2026,” reported Mark Maske of the Washington Post on Tuesday.

Adding an 18th game has been seen as inevitable, as CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones noted during the league’s annual meetings in April—though it was “not a focus of our discussions by any stretch of the imagination,” according to Commissioner Roger Goodell.

Last year, NFLPA Executive Director Lloyd Howell revealed that there had been informal talks regarding an 18-game schedule. However, according to Maske, these discussions have not led to formal negotiations, and any changes are unlikely before early next year.

Between now and then, Howell intends to hold “team-by-team meetings with players to set the NFLPA’s bargaining priorities,” as a source informed Maske. Formal negotiations could commence in March after the players’ representative meetings.

The league transitioned from a 16-game season to a 17-game season in 2021, following the approval of such a change in the 2020 Collective Bargaining Agreement. Players received an increased percentage of revenues and other benefits in exchange for the additional game.

Expanding from 17 to 18 games may not occur until 2028, as Maske indicates, if formal negotiations don’t begin until 2026. Some team owners had aimed for implementing an 18th game by 2027.

Key issues will likely encompass player safety and calendar logistics, as previously pointed out by Jones.