Sunday's Ticket

 

Stealing the one thing cable had keeping them afloat, earlier this year, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell confirmed long-standing speculation surrounding the league's Sunday Night Football ticket rights. After a nearly 30-year partnership with DirecTV, the NFL, following recent investment in live sports within streaming platforms, decided to ditch the traditional avenue of cable and step into the era of streaming. 

Now you could be asking, how can the NFL decide to split a thirty-year partnership? Surprisingly very easy, as this wasn't their first big break. This same year, Amazon recently purchased the rights to Thursday night football, paying $1 billion per season for the exclusive rights, streaming 15 Thursday night games and one preseason game. 

Courtesy of The Streamable

Returning to the Sunday night deal, according to Forbes, the once-guaranteed partnership between Apple and the NFL, securing exclusive streaming rights, has seemingly been intruded on by YouTube Tv. Citing that analysts initially predicted Apple would land the rights, Forbes highlights Google's recent efforts over the past few months as discussions have dragged on.

With conversations stalled between the NFL and Apple, YouTube's chief business officer, Robert Kyncl, has stepped up Google's offer, rebidding for the Sunday night rights. In comparison, Youtube holds north of five million more subscribers than DirectTV, the NFL's current partner, with Youtube crediting two million to Sunday night football alone. Alongside Apple and Google, Amazon also bid on Sunday night. After ratings fell short on Thursday Night Football and paying $1 billion per year for the rights, Amazon is considered a longshot. 

Reportedly bundling NFL Network and NFL RedZone into the Sunday Night Football deal with Goldman Sachs, the NFL is seamlessly adjusting to the new media landscape.