Like it or not, LeBron James and the NBA are going to have to make room for the NFL no matter what day of the week Christmas Day falls.
Netflix set records as the most-streamed NFL games in U.S. history while the NBA had its best holiday numbers in five years according to Nielsen.
The NFL and Nielsen said 65 million U.S. viewers tuned in for at least one minute of one of the two NFL games.
The Baltimore Ravens’ 31-2 victory over the Houston Texans averaged 24.3 million while Kansas City’s 29-10 win at Pittsburgh averaged 24.1 according to early viewer figures released by Nielsen on Thursday.
The NBA’s five-game slate averaged about 5.25 million viewers per game across ABC, ESPN and its platforms, according to the league and Nielsen.
“I love the NFL,” James said in his televised postgame interview Wednesday night. “But Christmas is our day.”
However, Wednesday’s ratings showed that there is room for both. Even though the NBA had the sports calendar to itself on Dec. 25 for many years, the NFL has made Christmas one of its tentpole events during the regular season, joining Kickoff Weekend and Thanksgiving.
Hans Schroeder, the executive vice president of NFL Media, took James’ comments in jest while also being joyful about the first season of the league’s three-year partnership with Netflix.
“The numbers speak for themselves and LeBron can have his own view, and I’m sure more people will look at that because of this,” he said. “But, you know, we’re focused on the NFL and we’re thrilled with the results this year with the Christmas on Netflix and we’re excited to continue to build that over the next couple of years.”
Both NFL games surpassed the previous mark of 23 million for last season’s AFC wild-card game between the Miami Dolphins and Chiefs on Peacock.
Viewership for Ravens-Texans peaked with the Beyoncé Bowl. The nearly 13-minute halftime performance averaged over 27 million viewers.
The viewer figures include the audience on Netflix, mobile viewership on NFL+ and those who tuned in on CBS stations in Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Baltimore and Houston.
Global ratings and final U.S. numbers are expected to be available on Tuesday.
The NFL’s Christmas numbers decreased from last season, but not at the rate that usually happens when something goes from broadcast to streaming.
Last year’s three games averaged 28.68 million viewers. The early afternoon contest between the Las Vegas Raiders and Chiefs led the way, averaging 29.48 million on CBS.
Once global and Netflix’s first-party data is released, both Christmas games should surpass 30 million.
The games were the second- and third-most popular live titles in Netflix history, surpassed only by the Nov, 14 fight between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson. That bout averaged a worldwide audience of 60 million and peaked at 65 million concurrent streams, including 38 million concurrent streams in the United States.
According to Netflix, 108 million worldwide viewed at least one minute of the fight card.
There will be at least two NFL games on Christmas next year, but with the holiday falling on a Thursday it is more likely to be three with two afternoon and one prime time. The NFL has had three Thanksgiving Day games since 2006.
“Everything Netflix put into the entire day, from the quality of the stream, the production and the graphics, made it feel like such a special Christmas Day,” Schroeder said. You had the opening with Mariah (Carey), you had Beyonce, it all took things to another level.”
The biggest victory for Netflix though is that there were very few streaming complaints. The only gripe from most is that the stream did not immediately go to live action if someone tuned in after the game started.
“Bringing our members this record-breaking day of two NFL games was the best Christmas gift we could have delivered,” Bela Bajaria, Netflix’s chief content officer, said in a statement. “We’re thankful for our partnership with the NFL, all of our wonderful on-air talent, and let’s please not forget the electrifying Beyoncé and the brilliant Mariah Carey.”
Beyoncé’s performance was trending number one worldwide socially on X , formerly known as Twitter. The hashtag #NFLonNetflix also trended around the world, reaching a peak of second in Australia, third in the United Kingdom and Germany, fifth in Brazil and France, and sixth in the U.S.
The NBA said all five Christmas games on its schedule — San Antonio at New York in Victor Wembanyama’s holiday debut, Minnesota at Dallas, Philadelphia at Boston, Denver at Phoenix and Lakers-Warriors — saw year-over-year viewership increases.
The NBA’s lineup saw an 84% rise over 2023. One reason for the increase is that all five games were on ABC, compared to two last year.
The Lakers’ 115-113 victory over the Warriors — a game pitting Olympic teammates James and Stephen Curry — averaged 7.76 million viewers and peaked with about 8.32 million viewers toward the end of the contest, the league said.
Those numbers represent the most-watched NBA regular season game in five years.
Wednesday’s numbers pushed NBA viewership for the season across ESPN platforms to up 4% over last season. The league also saw more than 500 million video views on its social media platforms Wednesday, a new record.
For the NBA, those are all good signs amid cries that NBA viewership is hurting.
“Ratings are down a bit at beginning of the season. But cable television viewership is down double digits so far this year versus last year,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said earlier this month. “You know, we’re almost at the inflection point where people are watching more programing on streaming than they are on traditional television. And it’s a reason why for our new television deals, which we enter into next year, every game is going to be available on a streaming service.”
Part of that new package of television deals that the NBA is entering into next season also increases the number of regular season games broadcast on television from 15 to 75.
Under the 11-year agreement, ESPN and ABC will continue air the Christmas Day games.
