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Does Netflix Really Need the NFL?

Streaming analyst Julia Alexander joins John for a brutally honest conversation about the state of streaming in its sports rights era, and why Amazon, not Netflix, is going after the biggest deals.

nfl bengals cowboys joe burrow
Sports rights are tough because there are only so many sports that command valuable audience attention, and those deals come around once every decade: That’s why you’re seeing these highly tactical moves. Photo: Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images
John Ourand
&
Julia Alexander
May 27, 2024

A decade after I first started writing about the promise of tech companies like Facebook and Twitter getting involved in sports, some digital platforms have become legitimate players. Amazon, of course, has taken the biggest step into the arena, with multibillion-dollar deals for Thursday Night Football and, potentially, the NBA too. Now we’re seeing Netflix (WWE, the NFL Christmas games), Google/YouTube (Sunday Ticket), and Apple (MLS, some MLB) making significant investments into sports rights, too.