Netflix wins Christmas Day with glitch-free NFL broadcast
Everyone was almost gleefully expecting trouble. But it didn’t arrive. Not only were Netflix’s big Christmas Day streams of NFL games glitch-free, but they also reaped record ratings. The future of live sports streaming is truly bright, it seems.
Image by Getty Images/Aaron M. Sprecher.
Everyone was almost gleefully expecting trouble. But it didn’t arrive. Not only were Netflix’s big Christmas Day streams of NFL games glitch-free, but they also reaped record ratings. The future of live sports streaming is truly bright, it seems.
Glitches marred the streaming giant’s last live global sporting event, the boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul. Last year, a live Love is Blind reunion also ran into difficulties – the show had to be taped and released later.
Unsurprisingly, observers of the industry were expecting more of the same when Netflix announced earlier in 2024 that it will exclusively livestream two Christmas Day NFL games.
The streamer paid the league around $150 million for the rights to stream the festive games, so the gamble was a big one.
The platform hadn’t yet proved it can ensure a smooth viewing experience during peak usage periods, and the NFL regularly boasts tens of millions of views, especially on special occasions such as the Super Bowl and, of course, Christmas.
But this time, Netflix seems to have kept its promise to invest in the best technologies for better real-time video delivery. The streams were executed almost perfectly, and no major buffering or freezing issues arose.
What’s more, the two games – the Kansas City Chiefs beating the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Baltimore Ravens crushing the Houston Texans – are now the most streamed NFL fixtures in US history.
According to Netflix, each game of American football attracted over 24 million viewers. The Ravens-Texans match also included the Beyonce halftime show which peaked with 27 million viewers.
The global stats will put those numbers even higher, of course. But it’s already clear that Netflix also helped the NFL – other sports tournaments’ viewership numbers were far more modest for Christmas Day.
NFL and NBA viewership numbers for their Christmas games:
undefined Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) December 27, 2024
NFL (Netflix):
- Chiefs-Steelers: 24.1M
- Ravens-Texans: 24.3M
NBA:
- Knicks-Spurs: 4.9M
- Celtics-76ers: 5.1M
- Timberwolves-Mavs: 4.3M
- Lakers-Warriors: 7.7M
- Nuggets-Suns: 3.8M
Numbers weren’t… pic.twitter.com/xx7DUkcTt4
“Bringing our members this record-breaking day of two NFL games was the best Christmas gift we could have delivered,” said Bela Bajaria, Netflix chief content officer.
It is indeed a big win for Netflix, bringing more confidence that the global platform can host more live programming for its massive and growing audience.
Just as importantly, advertisers have their heads turned, too – they might dedicate more of their TV ad budgets to Netflix. As the streamer’s ad-based plan is becoming more popular, its scale will soon be too large to be ignored.