If you thought that Christmas falling on a Wednesday meant no NFL football would be played on the holiday, think again.
The NFL announced that four teams would play on the holiday in 2024 after the league saw success with its 2023 tripleheader.
This year, the Christmas Day games will be streaming-exclusive, as Netflix announced it Wednesday. The streaming giant is paying a hefty price to land the two-game package.
That the NFL is willing to play on Christmas despite it being a Wednesday shouldn't be a surprise. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell spoke about the possibility during the NFL's annual meeting in March.
"COVID was actually a learning thing," Goodell explained, per CBS Sports. "[Playing Wednesday] would not be a regular thing. It will be when Christmas falls on a Wednesday. The time period between games has been done before. We have not seen an elevation of injuries.
"We have had a major focus on Thursday night when we first put this in. We have not seen that elevation either. I think we have this down."
That doesn't guarantee Goodell's decision will be popular with teams and players, but fans will be happy to have more NFL action on Christmas this year.
Here's what you need to know about the NFL's Christmas football schedule in 2024 and Netflix's involvement with the holiday.
NFL on Netflix, explained
The NFL sold the rights to its Christmas Day games to Netflix, the company announced Wednesday. The deal is for three years and encompasses the holiday through the 2026 NFL season.
Netflix's acquisition of the NFL's Christmas package comes as the streaming giant makes a foray into more live programming. Recently, it hosted a live roast of former NFL quarterback Tom Brady and the company hopes continuing its connection with the NFL will help it tap into a larger audience.
"Last year, we decided to take a big bet on live — tapping into massive fandoms across comedy, reality TV, sports, and more," Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria said in a statement. "There are no live annual events, sports or otherwise, that compare with the audiences NFL football attracts. We’re so excited that the NFL’s Christmas Day games will be only on Netflix."
Netflix also created the popular 2023 documentary series "Quarterback," which traced Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins, and Marcus Mariota's journeys during the 2022 season. Netflix is set to release another NFL documentary of a similar ilk. It's called "Receiver" and will feature Davante Adams, Justin Jefferson, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Deebo Samuel, and George Kittle.
That said, it makes sense Netflix would target the NFL package. The company reportedly had to fend off competition from Amazon Prime — the home of "Thursday Night Football" — to get the package, but Netflix ultimately emerged as the winner in the bidding war.
How much did Netflix pay for the NFL?
Netflix didn't disclose exactly how much it paid for the NFL package. However, Bloomberg reports the company will pay "less than $150 million per game."
If Netflix and the NFL continue to broadcast two games each Christmas, that would make the package's value worth under $900 million.
That's a hefty price to pay. Still, it could be worth it for Netflix, which is looking for a way to boost its ad sales, per Bloomberg.
Christmas football schedule 2024
The NFL has scheduled a Christmas doubleheader this year. Netflix will broadcast both games as part of its new agreement with the NFL.
The full schedule, including kickoff times and TV channels for the two games, will be updated once the matchups a revealed as part of the NFL's schedule release.
| Matchup | Time (ET) | TV channel |
|---|---|---|
| Ravens at Texans | 1:00 p.m. | Netflix |
| Chiefs at Steelers | 4:30 p.m. | Netflix |
NFL history of playing on Christmas
In its early history, the NFL largely avoided playing on Christmas. The league's regular-season used to end in early-to-mid-December and its championship game was played two weeks after the final regular-season game.
If that Sunday happened to be Christmas, as was scheduled in 1955 and 1960, the NFL moved its championship games until Monday, Dec. 26 to avoid the conflict.
After the AFL-NFL merger in 1970, that changed. The league allowed two Christmas Day games to be played during the 1971 playoffs. The Cowboys and Vikings squared off while the Dolphins played the Chiefs. The latter game ended up being the longest in NFL history at 82 minutes and 40 seconds of game time.
A total of 30 NFL Christmas games have been played since that 1971 doubleheader, and since 2020, the NFL has played nine games as it has made a concerted effort to establish its presence on Christmas.
Playing on the holiday in 2024 when it falls on a Wednesday, should only further establish that Christmas football is here to stay.
Which NFL teams have played the most Christmas games?
No NFL team has played on Christmas more than the Cowboys. They have five appearances to their name but have posted a record of just 2-3. Seven other teams have played on the holiday four times.
Here is a look at the teams with the most Christmas Day games played:
| Team | Total |
|---|---|
| Kansas City Chiefs | 5 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 5 |
| Green Bay Packers | 4 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 4 |
| Denver Broncos | 4 |
| Miami Dolphins | 4 |
| Tennessee Titans | 4 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 4 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 4 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 4 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 3 |
| Las Vegas Raiders | 3 |
| Pittsburgh Steeelers | 3 |
| Chicago Bears | 2 |
| Detroit Lions | 2 |
| Houston Texans | 2 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 2 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 1 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | 1 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 1 |
| New York Jets | 1 |
| New York Giants | 1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 1 |
| Cleveland Browns | 1 |
Which NFL teams have never played on Christmas?
Eight teams have not played on Christmas Day in the NFL's history. They are as follows:
- Atlanta Falcons
- Buffalo Bills
- Carolina Panthers
- Denver Broncos
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- New England Patriots
- Seattle Seahawks
- Washington Commanders
