Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has voiced his strong desire for the NFL to schedule games on Christmas Day annually, no matter which day of the week the holiday falls. This comes after the NFL's recent three-year deal with Netflix, granting the streaming platform exclusive rights to the 2024 Christmas Day doubleheader.
Jones emphasized the importance of the holiday, stating, "Christmas Day is Christmas Day, and it doesn’t wait around for what day it’s on. We want to be there on Christmas Day… I would think the future is whatever day it’s on, we’re going to be there on Christmas." This sentiment reflects the league's growing focus on capitalizing on the holiday viewership.
While the NFL has scheduled Christmas games in recent years, this year marks a shift with the Netflix partnership. The Pittsburgh Steelers will face the Kansas City Chiefs, followed by the Baltimore Ravens against the Houston Texans, with Beyoncé expected to perform at halftime of the latter game. These teams played their Week 16 games on Saturday to accommodate the Wednesday Christmas schedule.
Historically, the NBA has dominated Christmas Day programming, but the NFL's increasing presence on the holiday creates new competition. While the NBA continues to showcase key matchups on Christmas, they now share the spotlight with the NFL. No NHL games are scheduled for this Christmas.
Netflix's streaming of the Christmas games follows technical difficulties experienced during the recent Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight, putting pressure on the platform to deliver a smooth viewing experience. The deal with the NFL also includes streaming rights for at least one holiday game in both 2025 and 2026.
