Netflix NFL Games Will Cost About The Same As “One Of Our Medium-Sized Original Films,” Exec Says

NFL games on Netflix in a deal announced earlier today will each cost the streamer about the same as one mid-sized film, said Spencer Wang, EVP Finance, IR and Corporate Development.

The company, whi ch has been pushing into sports and live events, nabbed the rights to a doubleheader on Christmas day 2024 and will carry at least one holiday game over the next three years. Financial details weren’t disclosed. The WJS said Netflix will pay about $75 million a game this year. “I would characterize each game as roughly the size of one of our medium-sized original films,” Wang said during a Q&A at MoffettNathanson’s annual media conference.

“I would say it’s a very manageable cost” that fits within the streamer’s exiting content spend, pegged at about $17 billion this year.

“It’s a big day, exciting news for us,” he said.

But, as the company tends to do with each deal, he downplayed the latest foray into the nation’s highest-rated sport, telling investors to “think of this as really more part of our strategy to build out live events and “eventized” programming, rather than a big move into sports. He noted comedy specials like Chris Rock’s Selective Outrage , the recent Tom Brady roast and a long-term deal with WWE. “Those types of programming can deliver huge breakthrough moments that our audiences really love and we’re going to continue to build on that strategy.”

He said live is key to in a fragmented media landscape with so many choices since it can bring large audiences and passionate ones. “And I think the NFL fits in really well with that strategy.”

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