By Joe Flint
The National Football League cut a new four-year deal with Netflix for three more games, and licensed additional games to Fox and NBC.
The Details
Netflix deepened its relationship with the NFL by agreeing to a four-year pact that will include the rights to carry an opening-week international game, a new Thanksgiving Eve game and a game at the end of the season.
They also extended their current deal for at least one Christmas Day game. Netflix previously carried games just on Christmas.
Separately, the NFL licensed two additional games to Fox and one to NBC for next season. It also granted CBS the right to move a Sunday afternoon game into a stand-alone Saturday night prime-time slot.
The Context
Netflix has been eager to add more live sports to its platform as a way to attract major advertisers and keep subscribers on board. The NFL likes Netflix's younger audience and strong international reach. Netflix also said it would carry the "NFL Honors," an awards show that runs in the lead-up to the Super Bowl.
The additional games for Fox and NBC come as the league has been taking heat from lawmakers, rights holders and even President Trump for moving games to deep-pocketed streaming services.
Fox Corp. and The Wall Street Journal parent News Corp share common ownership.
The games included in the new deals are primarily the result of the NFL reducing the number of games that Disney's ESPN has for "Monday Night Football" to 19 from 23.
The new pacts also reflect the league's desire to create more stand-alone games and reduce the number of matchups scheduled for Sunday afternoons.
Write to Joe Flint at Joe.Flint@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 13, 2026 14:52 ET (18:52 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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