Netflix charging $5 million for NFL Christmas ad spots
The NFL’s Christmas Day games may have a new home, but prices for commercial slots aren’t budging much.
According to Bill Bradley of ADWEEK, the five ad packages for pro football’s Christmas games on Netflix will each cost at least $5 million.
The packages are categorized by pre-game, halftime, in-game feature No. 1, in-game feature No. 2 and post-game, with the last one the most expensive.
Netflix will become the fourth non-cable channel to carry an NFL game this season. AFP via Getty Images
Bradley detailed that each package must include at least eight 30-second ads for each company.
The NFL’s eight designated sponsors, including Gatorade, Verizon, Visa and Microsoft, are expected to have first dibs on the package options, with a June 26 deadline to decide.
The corporations will have the opportunity to market their products during telecasts of either Chiefs-Steelers — set for 1 p.m. ET — or Ravens-Texans at 4:30 p.m. ET.
The 2024 NFL season will mark the first to showcase games on Netflix, requiring fans to have another subscription to an ancillary streaming platform.
Along those lines, fans need NBC’s Peacock in order to watch the clash between the Packers and Eagles from Sao Paulo, Brazil in Week 1, plus require access to ESPN+ to watch the Chargers play the Cardinals on “Monday Night Football” in Week 7.
The NFL is intentionally diversifying its broadcast choices. AP
In 2022, the league moved its “Thursday Night Football” telecasts from FOX to Prime Video, marking the first legitimate shift of pro football games to streaming services instead of cable TV.
The $5 million price point for a Christmas ad package is tremendous for a regular-season game but still well short of the $7 million needed to air a single 30-second commercial during Super Bowl 58.
More broadly, the NFL has played at least two games on Christmas Day since 2021, and has aired a matchup on the holiday every year since 2020.
Last year, the NFL’s Christmas ratings triumphed over the NBA, with action on the gridiron — including a Raiders upset over the Chiefs and a battle of leviathans between the Ravens and 49ers — earning the top six slots on SportsMediaWatch.com’s rankings.