NFL Closing in on New Regular Season YouTube Package

The league is reportedly in advanced talks to stream 5 games on the platform next season.

Apr. 18, 2026 at 1:37am by

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

A cubist, geometric painting depicting an American football game, with sharp, overlapping planes of color representing the dynamic action on the field.The NFL's push to bring regular season games to the YouTube platform signals a new era of digital accessibility and global expansion for professional football.San Francisco Today

The NFL is in advanced discussions to have a new 5-game regular season package streamed on YouTube, according to reports. This would build on the league's existing partnership with YouTube TV, which currently hosts NFL Sunday Ticket. The expectation is that one of the games in this new package would be the NFL's debut in Australia, featuring the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams.

Why it matters

Streaming regular season NFL games on a free platform like YouTube would significantly increase accessibility for fans, especially those who don't subscribe to traditional cable or satellite TV packages. This move aligns with the league's goal of expanding its global reach, starting with the Australia game.

The details

The new 5-game package would be part of the NFL's efforts to re-package games that were previously aired on ESPN's Monday Night Football. With ESPN's acquisition of NFL Network, they gave back their extra MNF inventory, allowing the league to sell those games to another network or streaming service. YouTube has emerged as the frontrunner, beating out competitors like Netflix and Fox Sports.

  • The NFL's first YouTube broadcast was the Los Angeles Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs game in Week 1 of last season, played in Brazil.
  • The NFL schedule release is expected next month.

The players

NFL

The National Football League, the professional American football league.

YouTube

The popular video-sharing platform that is in advanced discussions with the NFL to stream a 5-game regular season package.

San Francisco 49ers

An NFL team that is expected to be part of the league's debut game in Australia as part of this new YouTube package.

Los Angeles Rams

An NFL team that is expected to be part of the league's debut game in Australia as part of this new YouTube package.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What’s next

We should see a resolution on this new YouTube package soon given the NFL schedule release is next month.

The takeaway

The NFL's move to stream regular season games on YouTube represents a significant shift towards expanding accessibility and global reach for the league, especially as it looks to debut in new international markets like Australia.