Netflix is emerging as the NFL’s preferred streaming partner for a coveted five-game package. According to John Ourand of Puck, YouTube could walk away with nothing.
What We Know: YouTube had been in talks with the NFL to broadcast as many as five games in 2026. However, those negotiations have since stalled. Per Ourand’s report, Netflix could earn three of the five games instead. The remaining two are likely moving to a traditional network — ABC, CBS, FOX Sports, or NBC. Last season, YouTube’s lone NFL broadcast — the Chiefs-Chargers opener from Brazil — drew 19.7 million viewers globally after the platform revised an initially undercounted figure of 17.3 million due to a technical error.
What The Numbers Show: (NFL Regular Season Average Viewership 2025)
Network Average NFL Regular Season Viewership Year-Over-Year Change
CBS Sports 21.252 million viewers +11%
FOX Sports 19.633 million viewers +6%
NBC Sports (Sunday Night Football) 23.5 million viewers +9%
ESPN (Monday Night Football) 15.8 million viewers +9%
Prime Video (Thursday Night Football) 15.33 million viewers +16%
Netflix (2 Games) 27.5 million viewers N/A
YouTube (1 Game) 18.5 million viewers N/A
NFL (Overall) 18.7 million viewers +10%
What Remains Unclear: With the NFL schedule release coming next Thursday, it remains unknown whether YouTube will receive any games at all from this package. Additionally, which traditional network lands the remaining two games has not been confirmed. No official announcements from the NFL, YouTube, or Netflix have followed the Puck report.
What It Means: Everything comes down to who pays the most for the product. Netflix has been serious about their intentions into getting live sports on their platform for years. The NFL continues to take a look at what the platform has done with investments with MLB, the World Baseball Classic, and the WWE. In addition, Roger Goodell said in a Vanity Fair article about how Netflix is bigger than some network partners. It’s no accident that the league is looking to do more business with Netflix over YouTube, which already has the Sunday NFL Ticket package.
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.