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YouTube Makes History With 2025 NFL Game Announcement

Originally posted on The Spun | By Daniel Bates | Last updated May 13, 2025 5:15 PM ET

It's officially that time of the year when the upcoming NFL schedule begins to reveal itself. And after some exciting new announcements, we now have a historic one as well.

In recent years, the league has put more of an emphasis on diversifying its viewership by adding streaming exclusives and meeting younger fans where they are. Now it's doing more of the same with one of the most popular video-watching platforms — YouTube.

Per the NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, "The NFL today announced that YouTube will stream the Friday night Week 1 game of the 2025 NFL season in São Paulo, Brazil on Sept. 5 to a worldwide audience on YouTube and YouTube TV — the first exclusive NFL game to be streamed live and for free in its entirety on YouTube."

The NFL today announced that YouTube will stream the Friday night Week 1 game of the 2025 NFL season in São Paulo, Brazil on Sept. 5 to a worldwide audience on YouTube and YouTube TV -- the first exclusive NFL game to be streamed live and for free in its entirety on YouTube.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) May 13, 2025

"We are excited to expand our relationship with YouTube to bring this year's Brazil game to a worldwide audience," Hans Schroeder, NFL EVP of media distribution, said in a statement on the news. "YouTube and YouTube TV have been incredible partners of the NFL for several years and boast an immense global reach, and we look forward to Week 1 in São Paulo."

"Last year, people spent over 350 million hours watching official NFL content on YouTube, so it's both fitting and thrilling to continue to build our relationship with our partners at the NFL," YouTube chief business officer Mary Ellen Coe added.

"Streaming the Friday night game to fans for free around the world will mark YouTube's first time as a live NFL broadcaster — and we'll do it in a way that only YouTube can, with an interactive viewing experience and creators right at the center of the experience."

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL - SEPTEMBER 6: The Philadelphia Eagles run the tush push play during the second quarter of an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers, at Arena Corinthians on September 6, 2024 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)Brooke Sutton/Getty Images

The NFL similarly opened its season with a game in São Paulo when the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles took on the Green Bay Packers at Corinthians Arena Sept. 6.

Unlike other streaming exclusives, YouTube is free to everyone, so this will likely be well-received by fans who already pay a premium for their NFL content — be that cable or the various other apps out there.

Last year's Brazilian debut was only available to subscribers of NBC's Peacock platform which reportedly drew 14.2 million viewers.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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