Netflix made history this year with its Christmas Day NFL games, attracting a record-breaking 27.5 million viewers for the livestream of the Minnesota Vikings-Detroit Lions game. According to Nielsen, this marked the most-streamed NFL game in U.S. history.
The average number of viewers tuned in at any given moment during the livestream, with the game’s peak moment reaching over 30 million viewers. The halftime show, “Snoop’s Holiday Halftime Party,” saw an average viewership of 29 million.
In addition to the Lions-Vikings game, Netflix also streamed the Dallas Cowboys-Washington Commanders game on Christmas Day, drawing an average audience of 19.9 million viewers. Amazon Prime Video also streamed a Christmas NFL game, the Denver Broncos-Kansas City Chiefs matchup, which averaged 21.1 million viewers and became Amazon’s most-watched Thursday Night Football regular-season game.
Last year, Netflix’s first-ever Christmas games averaged 24.3 million and 24.1 million viewers, respectively. With this year’s Lions-Vikings game exceeding those numbers, Netflix has now distributed the top three most-streamed NFL games in the U.S.
While Nielsen’s data focuses on U.S. viewership, Netflix’s NFL games were available globally, with viewers from over 200 countries and territories tuning in. The Lions-Vikings game saw an average minute audience of 30.5 million viewers worldwide, while the Cowboys-Commanders game reached 22.4 million.
The NFL games contributed to a successful Christmas Day for Netflix, which also premiered Volume 2 of the final season of “Stranger Things.” The season became Netflix’s most-watched title worldwide on Dec. 25 and garnered 34.5 million views throughout the week.
The NFL telecasts featured a lineup of entertainment, including performances by Snoop Dogg, Lainey Wilson, and Sugarhill Gang. Snoop Dogg even brought out the singers behind Huntr/x, the fictional girl group from the animated film “KPop Demon Hunters.” Martha Stewart joined in with a Snoop-themed parody of “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.”
Both games were produced by CBS Sports, with NFL Media handling pre- and post-game programming, as well as studio halftime shows. Netflix’s telecast was executive produced by EverWonder Studio.
Overall, Netflix’s Christmas Day NFL games proved to be a major success, breaking records and attracting a global audience to the exciting matchups.
