Netflix and the NFL announced a three-year deal Wednesday to stream games on Christmas Day.
The streaming giant plans to host two games this year and at least one in 2025 and 2026. Defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City will play Pittsburgh in Game 1, then play Baltimore and Houston.
The NFL has played a total of 30 games on Christmas Day since 1971, including three last year. However, he was away from midweek games until this year's Christmas date.
Hans Schroeder, executive vice president of NFL Media, said at team owners' meeting in March that teams playing on Christmas Day were presented with a plan to play their Week 16 games on Saturday, giving them the same preparation time as normal. Stated. Playing on Sundays and Thursdays makes for a shorter week.
After the owners gave the green light to proceed, Netflix approached the league about showing the game.
“We went through an extensive process and spoke with many potential parties and ultimately decided that Netflix was the best fit,” Schroeder said. “This is actually the first truly global rights deal with a major sports league and sports facility. We learned a lot and look forward to allowing fans around the world to enjoy games on a single platform. I am.”
Netflix began airing NFL programming last year with the series “Quarterback.” A series about wide receivers will air for the first time this year. It will also livestream a roast of Tom Brady on May 5th and will air a 10-part documentary series about Jerry Jones and his Dallas Cowboys owner later this year.
Netflix began its foray into live sports last year with exhibition golf and tennis events. The July 20th match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul is also scheduled to be aired, and World Wrestling Entertainment's flagship show “Raw'' is scheduled to begin airing next year.
“People love football, and so do we. These matches will be on top of everything we did live last year, including the Tom Brady Roast, the Netflix Slam, and the upcoming Jake Paul vs. Tyson boxing match. It aligns with our show's big event live strategy, and we're excited to have a conversation about the NFL around Christmas,” Bela Bajaria, Netflix's chief content officer, told The Associated Press.
It has not yet been determined who Netflix will hire to announce and produce the holiday doubleheader.
The bigger question is how the shift from broadcast television to streaming will affect ratings, since Christmas games typically draw large audiences. The average number of viewers for last year's three games was 28.68 million. The early afternoon game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs averaged 29.48 million viewers.
CBS Sports CEO and President David Berson welcomed Netflix, even if it meant no games on the network on Christmas Day.
“It's good for Netflix. The more interest there is in the NFL, the more profit we'll make,” Berson said. “It's impossible to broadcast every AFC game. We know some games will be broadcast on NBC, ESPN, Amazon, and in this case, Netflix,” he said. “It's great that they can be a part of this. Welcome to the party.”
While there has been some criticism of more games moving to streaming, most NFL fans are continuing to pay attention.
Last season's 16-game Thursday Night Football package on Prime Video averaged 11.86 million viewers, a 24% increase from 2023, according to Nielsen statistics. The two games drew more than 15 million viewers, including 15.3 million for the Nov. 30 matchup. Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys.
The AFC Wild Card Playoff game between the Miami Dolphins and the Kansas City Chiefs on Peacock on January 13th averaged 23 million viewers, setting a record for the most-watched event on a streaming service. It also surpassed the viewership of the Saturday night wild-card playoff game that aired on NBC in two of the past three years.
“We looked at all of these factors and what Netflix viewers could do with that reach,” Schroeder said. “We want to continue reaching our fans on these new platforms and where we know they spend their time. And we want to continue to reach our fans on these new platforms and where we know they spend their time. And we want to continue to reach our fans on these new platforms and where we know they spend their time. And we want to continue to reach our fans on these new platforms and where we know they spend their time. We are very much looking forward to welcoming you.”
In line with the NFL's long-standing policy regarding games distributed on cable or streaming platforms, Netflix's Christmas games will be broadcast on live television in the home cities of competing teams and available on mobile devices in the U.S. on NFL+. .
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
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