The Netflix logo is displayed on one of the streaming giant's Hollywood buildings in Los Angeles on July 12, 2023.
Mike Blake | Reuters
Netflix will broadcast Christmas Day NFL games for the next three years, in its first real step into live sports.
The streaming platform will air two games on Christmas Day this year, followed by at least one matchup in both 2025 and 2026, the league announced Wednesday.
It's unclear how much Netflix paid for the rights to stream the games.
Netflix has attracted large audiences with its sports programming, from the documentary “Formula 1: Drive to Survive” to its “Quarterback” series that follows NFL callers. While the company made big strides in live programming with a deal to air WWE's “Raw” and a boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul, the company had suggested it had not found a live sports rights strategy. that would work.
“We haven't seen a revenue path to renting big sports,” co-CEO Ted Sarandos said in December 2022.
“We're not against sports, we're just for profit,” Sarandos said.
Now, Netflix will stream games from America's most-watched sports league as it tries to boost profits by raising subscription prices, pushing users toward advertising-level membership and cracking down on streaming. passwords.
The three Christmas Day NFL games averaged 28.68 million viewers last year, according to Sports Media Watch.
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