U2 to headline Netflix's first NFL Thanksgiving Eve game on 25 November

Five games, up from two

Netflix carried a Christmas Day doubleheader in 2024 and another in 2025, and nothing else [8]. The 2026 slate is five games, a new high for the service [8].

Three of those five fall outside the Christmas window. Netflix opened with the NFL's first regular-season game in Australia, the San Francisco 49ers against the Los Angeles Rams in Melbourne on 10 September [9][12]. The Thanksgiving Eve game follows on 25 November. A Christmas doubleheader follows on 25 December. The Green Bay Packers play the Chicago Bears at 1 p.m. ET, then the Buffalo Bills play the Denver Broncos at 4:30 p.m. ET [9][12]. A Week 18 game on 9 January closes the run, with the teams still to be decided [9]. Netflix will also stream NFL Honors during Super Bowl week [11][12]. Sporting News noted the Christmas pairings are playoff rematches, after two seasons of lopsided or low-stakes holiday games [8].

What the rights cost

The Express reported in December 2025 that Netflix paid about $150 million for the rights to each Christmas game under the original deal [10]. That sits inside a much larger flow of sports money. Ampere Analysis put Netflix at 11.3% of the $6.5 billion streamers spent on US sports rights in 2025. That is behind Amazon at 34.4% and YouTube at 30.6% [7]. Amazon paid $11 billion for Thursday Night Football and YouTube paid $14 billion for Sunday Ticket, according to Business Insider [7].

How much Netflix actually spends is contested. A person familiar with the company's spending told Business Insider it was about $600 million, against Ampere's $738 million calculation [7]. Netflix's Spencer Wang has compared each NFL game to "roughly the size of one of our medium-sized original films" [7].

The audience it is building on

Nielsen counted 68.5 million combined viewers for Netflix's two Christmas games and Prime Video's nightcap in the week to 28 December 2025. That was a record for the holiday week [5]. The Minnesota Vikings' 23-10 win over the Detroit Lions drew 27.5 million viewers across 10 million households, the No. 2 most-watched programme of the week out of 250 [5]. The Dallas Cowboys' 30-23 win over the Washington Commanders drew 19.9 million across 8 million households [5]. Netflix's pre- and post-game shows for that game ranked No. 8 and No. 9, at 15 million and 14.7 million viewers [5].

The 2024 debut was bigger. Nielsen data cited by The Express put that doubleheader at nearly 65 million unduplicated US viewers, with Ravens-Texans at 24.3 million average minute audience and Chiefs-Steelers at 24.1 million [10]. The Melbourne opener averaged 18.5 million US viewers, peaked at 21.3 million and reached 21.7 million globally, with 100,021 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground [13].

Why Christmas

The NFL has played at least one game on Christmas since 2020 and staged three last year even though the holiday fell on a Wednesday [3]. Charles Barkley, on ESPN's NBA pregame show, called the league "greedy" and said "Christmas is an NBA day" [3].

Mixed reviews

The broadcast itself has drawn criticism. Fans complained about Zoom interviews with former players during live play and about heavy promotion of Netflix shows during the 2025 games [2]. Sports Business Journal, summarising US coverage, said the production had "left fans displeased" for a second straight season [3].

What happens next

Three dates matter: 25 November, 25 December and 9 January [9][11]. The Thanksgiving Eve game kicks off at 8 p.m. ET [11]. The length of the deal is less clear. USA Today described a three-year agreement signed before the 2024 season [9]. AOL republished a Men's Journal article that said Netflix had extended to 2030 with six games a season, citing What's On Netflix [12]. The two accounts differ.