The NFL’s media strategy has evolved rapidly over the past few seasons, pushing key matchups beyond traditional TV and into the digital domain. Thursday Night Football's move to Amazon Prime Video in 2022 signaled just the beginning. With media rights deals accelerating the shift, the 2025–26 season marks a milestone: the most streaming-exclusive games in league history.
For fans in the U.S., this shift reshapes weekly viewing habits, while sports media companies adjust production models to meet platform-specific demands. At the same time, global streaming giants like Amazon, Peacock, and ESPN+ are positioning NFL broadcasts as core assets in their content ecosystems. Which games will be online-only? How will these changes affect your football season? Let’s break it down.
The 2025–26 NFL season centers around a trio of powerful digital platforms: Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, and ESPN+/Disney. Each platform holds exclusive or complementary rights as part of long-term deals shaped by billion-dollar negotiations and the league’s push for digital expansion.
This allocation of streaming rights doesn't happen in a vacuum. Each deal reflects coordinated strategies between the NFL and major media conglomerates aiming for dominance in the digital sports market.
These streaming deals, locked in for most of the decade, shape not only game-day logistics but also how fans consume the league—from cable-cutting households in the U.S. to international viewers accessing the NFL through mobile apps and smart TVs.
Amazon Prime Video continues to serve as the exclusive home of Thursday Night Football (TNF) in 2025–26. All 15 regular-season Thursday night matchups will air solely on Prime, including key division rivalries and high-seed playoff contenders clashing in prime time.
This lineup centers on matchups with postseason stakes, including AFC East battles and games involving high-powered offenses such as Josh Allen’s Bills and Justin Herbert's Chargers. Veteran quarterbacks, playoff positioning, and regional rivalries dominate the TNF storylines.
NBCUniversal will stream several NFL games exclusively on Peacock, separate from its broadcast slate on Sunday Night Football. These exclusive games will not be simulcast on NBC or cable affiliates, reinforcing NBC’s long-term digital-first strategy.
These games focus on tightly contested AFC rivalries positioned deliberately in late-season slots, with playoff implications or division titles on the line. NBC has designed the schedule to build tension leading up to Week 18 while highlighting younger quarterback duels.
While most Monday Night Football content remains simulcast on cable and ABC, ESPN+ will carry a small slate of exclusive games. These select matchups are designed as special-event broadcasts, often capitalizing on early-season buzz or international fan interest.
These exclusives use geographic novelty and unique kickoff times to reach outside of traditional market windows, a clear nod to Disney’s global streaming ambitions through ESPN+.
Several other events will bypass traditional TV entirely, streamed exclusively via NFL partners’ digital platforms.
By positioning postseason games and holiday specials as streaming-only, the NFL locks in subscriber growth during peak interest periods. Each of these selections reflects a data-driven strategy targeting high viewership potential and digital engagement.
Amazon’s move into live NFL broadcasts through Thursday Night Football has evolved into a broader ambition: owning a central role in sports media. The company devotes substantial resources to deepen viewer engagement. For instance, it introduced alternative commentators like Al Michaels with AI-driven stat overlays and next-gen analytics during live games, enhancing the digital-native viewing experience.
In paralleling its approach with the WNBA, where Amazon grew the league's reach by making core games free for Prime members and promoting player storytelling through short-form content, the NFL project follows a similar playbook—strengthen emotional investment to maximize retention. With exclusive rights to stream NFL on Black Friday and expanded mobile access through Twitch integrations, Amazon increasingly acts not just as a distributor but as a sports broadcasting powerhouse with a tailored ecosystem.
NBC leverages its streaming arm Peacock to consolidate valuable sports rights under a single platform, aggressively positioning it as a go-to hub for football fans. The 2025-26 season includes multiple exclusive Sunday morning games on Peacock, mirroring its earlier strategy with Premier League and WWE properties. This bundling reduces churn and supports year-round engagement.
Unlike traditional TV scheduling, which is largely fixed, Peacock offers game replays, condensed game versions, and behind-the-scenes features on demand. Viewers control when and how they watch. This dynamic content release plan draws in not only NFL fans but cross-sport viewers who now associate Peacock with premium events beyond football.
ESPN's digital expansion continues with exclusive NFL simulcasts on ESPN+ during top-tier matchups. By shifting Monday Night Football supplemental coverage to streaming, the network reinforces Disney's broader strategic transition toward digital-first distribution, especially after ESPN+ subscriptions surged from 11.5 million in 2020 to over 26 million by late 2023 (Statista, 2023).
ESPN integrates streaming features like alternate “ManningCast” broadcasts, on-screen betting information, and real-time stats libraries. These elements signal a reconfiguration of sports presentation, away from passive watching toward interactive, data-rich user experiences tailored for cord-cutters and younger viewers—groups less likely to engage with legacy cable models.
Streaming exclusivity introduces regional disparities in access. In markets with high broadband penetration and smart device adoption—such as Seattle, Austin, and San Jose—fans enjoy seamless streaming and multiple camera angle options. In contrast, rural areas where reliable high-speed internet remains sparse experience more fragmented access, limiting their ability to follow key games unless multiple subscriptions are secured.
The net result is a new geography of access—not determined by broadcast zones but by platform subscriptions and internet connections. Those who adapt gain a richer, more customized viewing experience. Those who don’t risk missing marquee matchups entirely.
Despite the migration to streaming platforms, the NFL has maintained its regional blackout structure for certain games. If a game is streamed exclusively on a platform like Prime Video, it remains accessible over-the-air in the local markets of the two competing teams. This setup benefits local fans but restricts out-of-market viewers who lack subscriptions or use only broadcast channels.
National exclusivity doesn’t override these market protections. For instance, a Thursday Night Football game on Prime Video will also air in the home TV markets for both teams, typically through a local affiliate. However, fans outside those markets must rely on a paid streaming service—without workarounds.
The 2025–26 season continues the trend of content segmentation. Watching every NFL game outside of broadcast windows means juggling at least three streaming platforms:
This fragmented model introduces complexity for fans trying to track their team throughout the season. Those unwilling to subscribe to multiple platforms miss out on national matchups with postseason implications. NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV helps consolidate out-of-market Sunday access, but it carries its own subscription cost on top of the primary services.
Streaming-exclusive distribution comes with built-in limitations—specifically, the need for stable broadband. According to the FCC’s 2023 Broadband Progress Report, over 14 million Americans still don't have access to 25 Mbps/3 Mbps internet, the threshold considered adequate for live HD streaming.
This shortfall disproportionately affects rural households, where infrastructure investment has lagged. For those fans, streaming-only games may mean buffering, inadequate video quality, or complete inaccessibility. Even in urban areas, inconsistent WiFi quality or data caps present real barriers.
Streaming platforms introduce dynamic features not typically found in traditional broadcasts—alternate commentary feeds, interactive stats, on-demand replays, and multi-angle views. Some fans find these tools enhance engagement, especially younger viewers accustomed to digital-native content structures.
Yet, streaming carries latency. Studies by Phenix Real-Time Solutions show live streams lag behind cable by as much as 45 seconds, which creates real-time spoilers for fans following highlights via social media or push alerts. Traditional cable also supports easier channel-surfing for fans tracking several games simultaneously, a feature streaming hasn’t fully replicated.
So how are you watching the 2025–26 season? Balancing cost, reliability, and user experience, the shift to streaming redefines what it means to be a connected NFL fan—both in the U.S. and globally.
The league's proprietary service, NFL+, has evolved into a central hub for live game coverage, augmented content, and real-time stats. Starting in the 2025–26 season, NFL+ offers live local and primetime games on mobile devices, access to out-of-market preseason games, and full replays across platforms. The app, restructured for a more immersive experience, now integrates with NFL+ and delivers personalized highlights and analytics layered with predictive insights backed by Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Not all NFL streams follow the same delivery structure. Streaming-only games are exclusive to platforms like Amazon Prime Video or Peacock—viewers cannot access them via traditional broadcast channels. In contrast, simulcast games air on both conventional networks and streaming services simultaneously, maximizing reach without segmenting the fanbase. In the 2025–26 season, Amazon holds exclusive rights to Thursday Night Football under the streaming-only format, while ESPN+ facilitates simulcast distribution for select Monday Night Football matchups.
Current U.S. consumption patterns favor digital flexibility. According to Deloitte's 2024 Digital Media Trends survey, 53% of American sports fans under age 35 prefer streaming platforms over cable for game viewing. This aligns with the NFL’s pivot. By embedding content within ecosystems already frequented by digital-native audiences—such as Amazon Prime, YouTube TV, and ESPN+—the league maximizes viewer retention while opening new monetization lanes.
The NFL’s approach mirrors successful digital strategies deployed by the WNBA. In 2024, the WNBA reached record-breaking viewership through its Amazon exclusives, Friday night simulcasts on ESPN2, and Twitter live Q&A integrations. Amazon’s 2024 regular-season WNBA coverage averaged 505,000 viewers per game—up 56% year-over-year, according to Nielsen. While the leagues differ in scale, the concept holds: targeted streaming partnerships deliver audience growth, data access, and broader demographic engagement.
A conventional broadcast gives fans the game. Streaming platforms deliver the game, statistics, context, and control—all at once. In the 2025–26 NFL season, platforms like Amazon Prime Video and Peacock are rolling out features that shift the viewing experience from passive to participatory.
Not every game streams in ultra-high definition, but the number is climbing. Amazon Prime Video confirmed that all Thursday Night Football games in 2025–26 will be available in native 4K with HDR10+. This includes enhanced Dolby Vision support on compatible devices. Peacock has prioritized its Sunday night exclusives to lead its 4K catalog, though HDR access is still platform-specific—Fire TV users, for example, gain full compatibility, while Chromecast support remains partial.
In past seasons, streaming delays ranged from 20 to 45 seconds behind live TV. That gap is narrowing. Amazon’s low-latency HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) protocol integrated in late 2024 cuts lag to under seven seconds on average across supported devices. Peacock’s adaptive bit-rate streaming now includes frame-matching tech that keeps video-to-audio sync tighter, especially during quick-cut highlight reels.
At the same time, DVR functionality has expanded. Users can now pause a live game, rewind by drive or play, and restart from specific quarters. Amazon’s interface allows customizable replays, letting fans rewatch key downs from multiple angles before returning to the live moment.
Fans want interaction, not isolation. Weekly panel shows and halftime segments on Peacock now incorporate viewer polls, emoji reactions, and real-time chat overlays. Prime Video tested limited “Watch Party” functionality during the 2024 playoffs, enabling synchronized group streams with private chat—this expands to regular-season games in 2025. Many viewers have also pushed for tighter integrations with Discord, Twitch, and X (formerly Twitter), especially during marquee matchups. These changes reflect a broader trend: fans no longer see the stream as separate from the conversation.
The rise of streaming-exclusive NFL games in the 2025–26 season has sharply reduced the perceived value of traditional cable bundles. For decades, networks like ESPN, CBS, NBC, and FOX anchored cable packages with consistent NFL access. Now, with marquee matchups locked behind platforms like Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, and ESPN+, many fans no longer find justification for premium cable tiers that don’t include full NFL coverage.
Data from Leichtman Research Group revealed a 7.4% decline in U.S. cable TV subscribers from 2022 to 2023, down to approximately 60 million households. With more games slipping behind digital paywalls this season, that figure is projected to dip below 55 million by year-end 2025. These changes accelerate the unbundling trend that subscription TV has struggled to contain.
Previously, local affiliates guaranteed fans access to their hometown teams. That’s no longer automatic. Under the new media deals, streaming platforms hold exclusive rights to certain games without regional simulcasts. For example, Thursday Night Football on Prime continues to bypass traditional networks entirely unless mandated by local market rules.
This shift hits older and rural audiences the hardest. Households without high-speed internet or smart TVs can't legally access some live games. Replays and highlights, once a staple on free over-the-air broadcasts, are often delayed or limited by digital licensing restrictions.
Faced with declining viewership and loss of marquee content, cable companies have turned to aggregation partnerships. Comcast, Spectrum, and Verizon now offer bundles that include subscriptions to streaming platforms alongside traditional channel lineups. For instance, Verizon’s 2025 “NFL Fusion” package incorporates access to NFL Sunday Ticket via YouTube TV, aiming to keep customers within its digital ecosystem.
However, this hybrid approach introduces complexity. Viewers must juggle multiple logins, inconsistent interfaces, and cross-platform billing. Some consumers welcome the convenience of curated access points; others view it as fragmentation disguised as innovation.
A growing segment of NFL fans fits into the “hybrid viewer” model—individuals who subscribe to both cable and streaming to ensure comprehensive coverage. According to a 2024 Deloitte survey, over 41% of sports fans reported using three or more platforms to watch games.
This group values flexibility above all else. They watch live on mobile during commutes, stream games on smart TVs at home, and catch replays on-demand. While hybrid viewing presents a higher cumulative cost, it also maximizes access. As streaming-exclusive NFL content grows, this cohort is setting the standard for modern sports consumption rather than being the exception.
Watching all the streaming-exclusive NFL games in the 2025–26 season means navigating a fragmented subscription landscape. Here's a breakdown of what subscribers need to budget for, based on publicly available pricing as of Q2 2024.
Fans planning to access every NFL streaming-exclusive game can expect to pay between $31.97 and $37.97 monthly, assuming they subscribe separately to each provider at standard rates — that’s before taxes or account add-ons.
Several bundling options claim to offer savings but only deliver real value when users engage with non-NFL content. The Disney Duo (Disney+ and Hulu with ESPN+) starts at $14.99/month, while the Trio (adding Disney+ and Hulu ad-free) runs up to $24.99/month. Verizon’s myPlan includes a +play perk that occasionally bundles subscriptions like NFL Sunday Ticket with streaming services at discounted rates, but availability fluctuates.
For a fan focused purely on live NFL games, bundles can create redundancy. Peacock and ESPN+ rarely overlap in NFL coverage, and Amazon Prime remains standalone. In practice, cord-cutters seeking complete NFL coverage often end up paying for multiple single-purpose services.
The shift to streaming hasn't reduced the financial outlay for fans. Based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average U.S. household spent $106/month on cable and satellite TV in 2023. Replacing that with a streaming stack covering NFL content—Amazon Prime, Peacock Plus, ESPN+, and potentially YouTube TV or DirecTV Stream for the remaining broadcast games—often exceeds that baseline.
Adding Sunday Ticket, now a YouTube exclusive, dramatically increases costs. The basic 2024 Sunday Ticket price is $349 per season. Even with promotional discounts from Verizon or YouTube Premium ($100 off), the average cost still sits near $250 annually.
Millennials and Gen Z are driving an increase in shared subscription behavior. According to a 2024 survey by Deloitte, 47% of Gen Z streaming users share at least one paid account outside their household. Peer-to-peer cost sharing, family logins, and content-swapping networks are changing the way younger demographics access NFL games.
Platform responses have varied. Netflix has taken a restrictive stance on password sharing; Amazon and Peacock have not followed suit—yet. ESPN+ allows simultaneous streaming on up to three devices, which continues to support communal viewing among friends or roommates.
Will streaming platforms tighten access controls as subscriptions multiply? That question waits for an answer, but one trend is clear: shared models are helping young fans stay connected without burning through their budgets.
Streaming-exclusive games have disrupted long-standing viewership norms. While traditional cable broadcasts still draw millions, digital-exclusive games have demonstrated sharp growth. For example, Amazon’s 2023 “Thursday Night Football” broadcasts on Prime Video averaged 9.6 million viewers per game, a 24% increase from the previous season, according to Nielsen and first-party data reported by Amazon.
This trend continues in 2025–26. Early season numbers show that streaming-exclusive matchups are outperforming some lower-tier cable games, particularly among younger viewers and in metropolitan markets with high broadband penetration.
Gen Z and Millennial fans increasingly dictate viewership behavior. These two demographic groups now account for roughly 45% of NFL digital engagement, according to the league’s internal analytics. They are far less likely to watch a full game on cable but significantly more likely to stream a game on mobile, tablet, or web-enabled TVs—especially when highlights, replays, and stats are embedded in real time.
While Baby Boomers and Gen X still dominate in absolute viewing numbers, the growth curve among younger fans is higher. NFL game pass subscriptions and platform-native streams (like those through YouTube TV and NFL+) see significant engagement spikes during key matchups trending on social networks.
Every streaming-exclusive game becomes a real-time social event. Platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and TikTok act as parallel broadcasts, where clips circulate within seconds. The NFL’s partnerships with Snapchat and Instagram Reels have scaled rapidly, with some exclusive game highlights reaching 20+ million views in under 24 hours.
This amplification leads to viral moments that rarely happen in traditional broadcasts. Memes, gifs, and trending hashtags tied to live plays create an extended digital halo that elevates the reach of streaming games far beyond login viewers.
Streaming platforms embed interactive elements that cable simply can’t match. Fantasy football interfaces now sync with live streams—offering real-time projections and player performance overlays. On-screen links to lineup changes or waiver wire suggestions appear dynamic during most 2025–26 digital games.
Sports betting integrations also play a critical role. With states like New York, Ohio, and Illinois fully regulating in-game betting, bookmakers report up to 30% higher live-bet volume during streaming-exclusive games, according to data from DraftKings and FanDuel. Streaming apps link directly to sportsbooks, and viewers seamlessly shift from game to betting slip without switching devices or apps.
Will cord-cutters become the core NFL audience in five years? Is traditional broadcast destined for a niche role? Streaming-exclusive ratings say yes—but viewer behavior in the next two seasons will tip the scale. If you're a fantasy manager who also likes to place a bet mid-game, are you more likely to keep watching on a platform offering both?
Streaming-exclusive NFL games in the 2024–25 season sparked passionate debates across fan communities. On Reddit’s r/nfl thread, posts about missed Thursday Night Football streams on Amazon Prime Video saw thousands of upvotes and hundreds of comments—many pointing to technical issues, lack of device compatibility, or dissatisfaction with navigating multiple subscription platforms. Twitter (now X) mirrored this sentiment, especially during key prime-time matchups, with spikes in real-time complaints when streams lagged or apps crashed under peak demand.
Conversely, younger demographics on platforms like TikTok and YouTube expressed greater acceptance of streaming models. Many praised the convenience and additional features—alternate commentary streams, real-time stats overlays, and mobile-friendly access—unavailable on traditional broadcasts. Reviews on Apple’s App Store and Google Play for NFL’s digital platforms reflected this divide, with five-star reviews citing innovation and customization, while lower-star reviews focused primarily on usability and fragmentation.
Across fan forums and focus group discussions, a recurring theme has emerged: users want less fragmentation. The call for a “super app” or consolidated digital hub has intensified. Fans are asking for a centralized platform that combines live games, condensed replays, fantasy integrations, merchandise, stats, and league news—without needing separate logins or billing accounts for Amazon, Peacock, or YouTube TV.
The NFL has started to collect and analyze fan sentiment more proactively. Internal surveys distributed via the NFL OnePass app following streaming broadcasts reflected higher Net Promoter Scores (NPS) among users who accessed games on a smart TV interface versus mobile or web browsers. In early 2025, NFL Chief Media Officer Brian Rolapp cited the league’s growing emphasis on user feedback to inform its digital roadmap during a panel at CES.
Third-party research from Deloitte’s Sports Fan Insights 2024 report supports this momentum, revealing that 41% of surveyed sports fans—across football and other leagues—prefer bundled sports packages rather than piecemeal subscriptions. This consumer behavior is driving clear signals the NFL is already tracking closely.
With fan sentiment clear, technical capabilities advancing, and streaming partners pushing for deeper integration, the question isn’t whether the NFL will centralize digital access—but how and when.
©2025 American TV. All Rights Reserved
Disclaimer: All rights reserved. AmericanTV.com is a website for research and comparison as such, falls under "Fair Use". AmericanTV.com does not provide directly phone, TV, and internet service. All trademarks, logos, etc. remain the property of their respective owners and are used by AmericanTV.com only to describe products and services offered by each respective trademark holder. The use of any third party trademarks on this site in no way indicates any relationship between AmericanTV.com and the holders of said trademarks, nor any endorsement of AmericanTV.com by the holders of said trademarks.
We are here 24/7 to answer all of your TV + Internet Questions:
1-855-690-9884
1-855-690-9884