Observed Signal · Oct 28, 2025 · Partnership · Source: State of Streaming · Impact: 4/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Amazon, NFL to Stream Black Friday Game Globally Free
Amazon and the NFL will stream the November 28 Black Friday game globally on Prime Video and make it available free to watch without a subscription. The move is positioned as a customer-acquisition and commerce play for Amazon on a high-traffic shopping day and follows a 41% year-over-year viewership increase for the 2024 Black Friday game. The broadcast represents Prime Video’s first global NFL game and replaces international distribution previously handled by partners such as DAZN in some markets. Availability will vary by platform and region — the game will also be accessible in the U.S. via NFL+ for mobile and on DAZN in certain international territories — highlighting fragmentation in live-sports streaming distribution.
A major platform (Amazon/Prime Video) securing and free-streaming a global NFL game shifts distribution, audience reach and commerce opportunities for streaming platforms and advertisers during a high-traffic retail moment.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Amazon and the NFL will stream the November 28 Black Friday game worldwide on Prime Video.
- Prime Video will make the Black Friday game free to watch without a Prime subscription.
- Viewership for the 2024 Black Friday game rose 41% year-over-year.
- The broadcast is Prime Video's first global NFL game and takes over some international rights previously handled by DAZN.
- In the U.S. the game will also be available on NFL+ for mobile, and DAZN will carry rights in some international markets.
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Prime Video Reveals 2026 Thursday Night Football Schedule
Prime Video published its 2026 Thursday Night Football (TNF) schedule — a 17-game slate running from a preseason game on August 27 through a mid‑January Wild Card playoff slot. The official regular-season TNF opener is Week 2 on September 17 with the Detroit Lions visiting the Buffalo Bills at the new Highmark Stadium. Prime Video confirmed holiday games including Black Friday, Christmas Eve, and New Year’s Eve, and said the Prime Vision with Next Gen Stats AI‑enhanced alternate broadcast will return. The main broadcast team includes Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit, with Kaylee Hartung and Charissa Thompson in reporting/hosting roles and several NFL veterans contributing analysis. Games are available to Amazon Prime members at no additional charge and will stream across devices, local OTA in home markets, Twitch, and via NFL+ on mobile.
Amazon's TNF Opener Nears Netflix, Narrows Broadcast TV Gap
Amazon Prime Video's first Thursday Night Football game of the 2026 NFL season averaged 18.6 million viewers, nearly matching Netflix's 18.518 million for its first NFL game, while NBC and Peacock led with 25.1 million for the Kickoff Game. This narrows the audience gap between streaming-exclusive NFL games and traditional broadcast, highlighting the NFL's growing confidence in streaming. Amazon's viewership was up 5% from last year's opener and ranked as the third-most-watched regular-season NFL game on the platform. The results come despite overall NFL Week 1 viewership falling 13% year-over-year, with NBC's Sunday Night Football up 4% and ESPN's Monday Night Football setting a record. The data shows streaming services are now drawing audiences nearly comparable to traditional TV for major NFL games.
Prime Video's Bears‑Packers Stream Breaks NFL Record
Amazon’s Prime Video set a new NFL streaming record for a single game, averaging 31.61 million viewers for the Chicago Bears vs. Green Bay Packers wild‑card on Jan 17, 2026. The broadcast surpassed the prior streaming record of 27.52 million set by Netflix and became the first streaming‑exclusive NFL game to exceed 30 million average viewers, peaking above 34 million in the final minutes. The result underscores the growing dominance of streaming for live sports, strengthens Amazon’s negotiating leverage for NFL rights, and follows a broader uptick in Prime Video NFL viewership (including a reported 16% year‑over‑year gain for Thursday Night Football).
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