CNN
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The NFL’s Netflix debut was a success – as far as streaming goes, anyway. But even with Beyoncé performing at halftime, the games’ ratings were roughly on par with last year’s Christmas viewership, which was aired on broadcast and cable TV.
The late Ravens-Texans game averaged 24.3 million viewers in the United States, and the early Chiefs-Steelers game averaged 24.1 million, according to Nielsen. The games were the most-streamed games in NFL history, the ratings company said.
Viewership for the Ravens-Texans peaked at the halftime show, dubbed the Beyoncé Bowl, with over 27 million viewers, Nielsen reported.
“Bringing our members this record-breaking day of two NFL games was the best Christmas gift we could have delivered,” said Bela Bajaria, Netflix chief content officer, in a statement.
That might have been a stellar debut for football on Netflix, but the numbers weren’t particularly great for the NFL. Last year’s Christmas games, all broadcasted on traditional TV and cable networks, each out-rated this year’s offerings. The Raiders vs. Chiefs on CBS netted 29.2 million viewers. The Eagles vs. Giants on Fox scored 29 million and the 49ers vs. Ravens on ESPN had 27.1 million viewers on average, Nielsen reported.
This year’s Christmas Day games were the first of a three-year deal for the NFL and Netflix, which paid $150 million to carry the games through 2026.
“We’re thrilled with our first Christmas Gameday on Netflix with NFL games being streamed to a global audience,” said Hans Schroeder, NFL executive vice president of media distribution, in a statement.
The ratings may have been hurt by the blowout scores. The Ravens beat the Texas 31-2, and the Chiefs outscored the Steelers 29-10.
The NFL experimented last year with streaming its playoff game on Peacock, and the ratings were surprisingly strong despite significant confusion and concern from fans ahead of the game. At the time, the Chiefs-Dolphins game on Peacock on January 15 was the most-streamed live event in history.
It has since been eclipsed – by a lot. Last month, Netflix streamed a fight between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul, which the company said was the most-streamed global sporting event of all time with an average of 108 million live viewers around the world. Per Netflix, that fight peaked at 65 million concurrent streams with 38 million concurrent streams in the US.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated which game streamed first. The Chiefs-Steelers game was the early game on Wednesday.