YouTube to Exclusively Stream NFL’s First Friday Game, Aims to Attract TV Dollars

YouTube unveiled several initiatives designed to attract more TV-advertising dollars to its platform at Brandcast, its annual Upfront event for advertisers. Notably, the Google-owned video service is expanding its partnership with the NFL, with plans to exclusively stream the league’s opening Friday game of the 2025–26 season, TechCrunch reported.

As part of the NFL partnership, YouTube will exclusively stream the first Friday game hosted in São Paulo, Brazil, to a global audience. In the United States, the game will be available to YouTube TV subscribers. Internal data indicates that users consumed over 350 million hours of NFL content last year with more than 6 million live views for the NFL’s Super Bowl LIX Flag Football game. The extended agreement with the NFL will enable YouTube to webcast the flag football game for several years to come.

Announcements for Creators and Advertisers

YouTube is also planning to test a new method for creators to reach audiences watching on TV screens by offering easily organised and bingeable TV episodes.

This update was announced during YouTube’s Made on YouTube event in September, where CEO Neal Mohan highlighted that creators earning the majority of their revenue from TV screens saw a year-on-year increase of over 30%. A new tool, available to select creators in the pilot programme, will enable them to organise their content into seasons and episodes similar to a traditional television show.

In addition to new initiatives around “shoppable TV” and tools enabling advertisers to target major cultural moments such as awards season or the PGA Championship, YouTube is reinforcing its message to advertisers that it is more than just an online video service—it represents the new way people watch TV.

YouTube’s appeal to creators focuses on bringing their content into people’s living rooms.

Hundreds of creators will participate in the inaugural trial, set to begin in the United States this summer, which will allow them to organise their content into a viewing experience tailored for the big screen. Creators such as Michelle Khare’s Challenge Accepted and Good Mythical Morning with Rhett & Link will use the new tools to divide their content into “seasons” and “episodes,” making it more binge-worthy on television.

The company is also introducing options to shop from YouTube via QR codes and other send-to-phone features and will utilise Gemini AI to match advertising with popular, relevant content.