Netflix wants to expand its relationship with the NFL
· Yahoo Sports
Netflix has dipped its toe into the NFL ocean with a pair of Christmas games over the past two seasons. Will there be more NFL on Netflix?
Apparently, yes.
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“The NFL is a great property, and it delivers value as part of our total offering," Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos said on an earnings call this week, via Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing. "We are in discussions right now, because we think there’s an opportunity to expand the relationship. We’ve learned a lot about what works, and how to value the NFL and live content generally over the last couple of years."
It's unclear what the "discussions" relate to. YouTube reportedly is working on a long-form contract with the NFL for the five-game package that was offered to potential partners for 2026; Netflix, YouTube, and Fox were the three candidates as of last weekend.
Could Netflix also be talking to the league about taking over one of the weekly packages?
The full aspirations of Netflix aren't known. It reportedly "would love" to televise the first game of the season, which is currently part of the NBC package. Last October, Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters said a full package "doesn’t really fit with our strategy." Peters said Netflix wants more games that the streamer can "eventize."
Still, Netflix chief content office Bela Bajaria blurted out in February 2025 the possibility of taking over one of the Sunday afternoon packages. And Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has said Netflix will become a "huge part of our future."
Netflix seems to have a business strategy of being deliberately vague about its words, allowing its actions to do the speaking. And that's not a bad strategy. It keeps competitors on their toes. It also allows Netflix to eventually say that what it gets is exactly what it wanted.
The reality remains that most of the packages will be available after 2029, with the Monday night games coming up after 2030. Given the new pressure on the NFL regarding the potential limits of its antitrust exemption, the easiest packages to shift to Netflix would be the two that are currently on paid platforms: Thursday night on Amazon and Monday night on ESPN.
This assumes the NFL even cares about the potential consequences of plucking another package from free TV. If it doesn't, Netflix could be in play to get whatever it's willing to pay for.
Maybe, in the end, it won't be a traditional package. Maybe Netflix will have an annual selection of, say, 10 games that will include the first game of the season, one or more international games that land in prime-time windows, a Halloween game, a Veterans Day game, a Thanksgiving Eve game, one or more Thanksgiving games, one or more Black Friday games, a Christmas Eve game, one or more Christmas games, the last game of the regular season, and/or other games that don't fit within the parameters of the traditional weekly windows.
However it goes, it's safe to think more games will be going to Netflix. Sooner or later and probably sooner.