At the start of this year, a recent poll revealed that about 60% of sports fans have skipped attending games multiple times over the past year due to high costs. Interestingly, 72% of those fans believe that major sporting events ought to be available on free television rather than being locked behind paywalls.
As for the NFL’s upcoming schedule for 2026-2027, there isn’t much good news for fans concerned about costs.
Full season details will be announced on Thursday, but some streaming plans are already making waves. Notably, Netflix is broadening its coverage for this season, kicking off with the 49ers versus the Rams in Australia on September 10th. There will also be games on Christmas Day and Thanksgiving Eve.
Previously, Netflix only aired games on Christmas. So, if fans are interested in accessing NFL content, they might find themselves needing to maintain a subscription for three months instead of just one.
Peacock is set to feature an exclusive primetime matchup on January 2nd. While all NBC games are streamed there, this particular game will be exclusive to Peacock, which recently hiked its price to almost $11 monthly.
Moreover, fans are expected to have Amazon Prime for the whole regular season, especially for “Thursday Night Football” and a wild-card game.
Interestingly, a platform that used to offer free games might sit out this season. Reports suggest YouTube could back away from splitting a five-game package with Netflix, leading to its potential withdrawal.
The NFL hasn’t clarified how it will handle the remaining game distribution or if ESPN+ will air exclusive games as it did last year. If that’s the case, fans might need yet another subscription, even if it’s just temporarily.
There are growing concerns about the schedule’s impact on game quality. The league plans to introduce two Wednesday games this season, along with matches on Black Friday, leaving Tuesday as the only day without games—for now, anyway.
It’s possible that, someday, the NFL could even consider including Apple TV in its plans, perhaps in a joking nod to Election Day celebrations.
With games spread over numerous days, some worry about the strain it puts on players regarding game time, rest, and injury risks. Recovery periods are shorter, preparation gets trickier, and it ultimately could affect how well the games are played. There are already concerns about teams struggling, and it’s becoming apparent that not every team can maintain high quality in this expanded framework.
Take Thanksgiving week as an example: by Sunday, ten teams will already have played, yet the league still needs to fill additional time slots. Fans might remember last Christmas Eve, where all games seemed nearly irrelevant, with just one team qualifying for the playoffs.
Eventually, the NFL will need to consider if maximizing media rights revenue is worth the possible decline in game performance.
It’s likely that, as we look ahead, the league might not reach a tipping point of being too costly and difficult to watch until 2026.
