The NFL and Google have joined forces in a monumental deal for the exclusive rights to the Sunday Ticket starting in 2023. This marks the end of a nearly 30-year agreement with DirecTV with the move to Google’s live TV offering.
The NFL officially announced this deal and is already hyping it up on Twitter this morning. The rumor mill from NFL insiders is this is a 7-year deal giving YouTube TV a huge boost in potential customers. The NFL is the biggest game in US sports ratings dominating other sports with its consistent viewership.
The new Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV is set to be available in two forms. First, you can tack on the service as an add-on to your monthly YouTube TV subscription. Thankfully, moving away from complete lock-in like with DirecTV, Google and the NFL will also allow users access to the Sunday Ticket via standalone purchases with YouTube Premium Channels format.
As mentioned, this is a big win for Google to expand YouTube TV in both subscribers and its presence in the sports world. ProFootBallTalk reports Mt. View outbid others like Apple with an estimated $2.5 billion contract agreement for the 7-year deal. The NBC outlet also states that the cost will stay similar to that of the current DirecTV charges, which is roughly $300 per year.
What do our football fans think out there? Are you excited to see the Sunday Ticket finally out of the hands of DirecTV? Do you think this Google partnership makes it more or less appealing?
