The NBA and NFL Need to Solve this Christmas Day Problem Really Quickly

Jake Yono

12/26/24 

JY Journalism

Yesterday was the holiday of Christmas, and as has become tradition, sports leagues seized the opportunity to hold games for fans seeking entertainment on this special day. The National Basketball Association (NBA) was the first league to host games on Christmas, beginning in 1947, and this tradition has continued to the present day. For many sports fans, Christmas has become synonymous with waking up to watch five competitive basketball games featuring superstar players from across the league.

This arrangement worked well for the NBA until 2020, when the National Football League (NFL) began scheduling games on Christmas. As most people know, the NFL operates on a different level of popularity compared to the NBA, averaging approximately 16 million viewers per game over the past decade, compared to the NBA's 1.6 million. This disparity means the NBA must strategize to maintain its market share in the competitive landscape of American professional sports.

In my opinion, the NBA should negotiate an agreement with the NFL to preserve Christmas as its exclusive day for games. A contractual arrangement could ensure that only NBA games are held on this holiday, allowing the league to regain its foothold. As always, money plays a crucial role in this conflict. Eight months ago, just before the release of their schedule, Netflix signed a three-year deal with the NFL to broadcast games, starting this year on Christmas Day. Reports indicate that these broadcasts generate approximately $80 million per game for Netflix, which recently entered the live sports broadcasting space with a major success: the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight.

If I were the NBA, I would have fought hard to prevent this deal from including Christmas Day broadcasts. Yesterday alone, the NFL generated around $280 million from two games—Chiefs vs. Steelers and Ravens vs. Texans—featuring a halftime show with Beyoncé that reportedly earned $20 million. In comparison, the NBA brought in $26 million for the day, which, while an improvement over recent years, pales in comparison to the NFL's dominance. The NFL’s reach on Netflix, which is available in one out of every four households, creates an enormous challenge for the NBA.

The NBA has yet to take significant precautions to address this shift, but players are speaking out. For example, after his team’s Christmas Day win against the Golden State Warriors, LeBron James stated, "This is our day." As a general sports fan, I appreciate James’ efforts to preserve the significance of Christmas Day for the NBA, which features its most important slate of games all season.

A potential solution to this issue is implementing scheduling rules similar to those already in place between the NFL and college football, which prohibit games from overlapping. This rule was slightly adjusted last weekend during the first round of the College Football Playoff, where SMU played Penn State and Texas faced Clemson. Similarly, on Christmas Day, the NFL’s games conflicted with the NBA's schedule. The adjustment occurred because the rules have yet to reflect the expanded College Football Playoff format.

Relating back to the NBA, it’s now or never for them. With Netflix’s NFL contract set to expire in 2026, the sums of money involved will only grow. As the world’s most popular streaming service partnering with the most valuable sports league, this creates a monopolistic scenario that threatens other sports leagues and their TV deals globally. Using this NFL-Netflix partnership on Christmas Day—a marquee day for the NBA—signals a dangerous trend of the NFL overshadowing other American sports.

To be clear, I’m not suggesting the NFL-Netflix deal shouldn’t have happened, but Christmas Day should have been off-limits. Allowing the NFL to dominate this day diminishes the NBA’s significance and strengthens the NFL’s monopoly on American sports. I want to see a balanced representation of all sports, with each league retaining the days they have traditionally “claimed.” This approach not only respects the history of these sports but also helps bolster the branding of each individual league in the United States.

In the end, there needs to be greater fairness among sports leagues when it comes to broadcasting schedules. Christmas is the NBA’s day, and the league cannot allow the NFL to encroach on this tradition, pulling away viewers and diminishing the importance of professional basketball. All five NBA games on Christmas Day were competitive, with margins within 10 points, showcasing the league’s excitement and talent. This legacy should not be overshadowed by the NFL’s monopolistic tendencies and their partnership with Netflix, which risks eroding the greatness of NBA basketball on Christmas Day.