LeBron James has been handed a brutal reality check after the NFL’s Christmas Day viewing figures crushed the NBA’s.
Following the Los Angeles Lakers’ festive win over the Golden State Warriors, James looked down the camera and said: ‘I love the NFL. But Christmas is our day.’
The timing of the message to America’s most popular sport was poignant, as the NBA had five games scheduled compared to the NFL’s two.
The NFL continues to muscle in on the festive action, however, and their pair of games was the most for a non-Sunday Christmas Day in league history.
And their strategy is clearly working after Netflix set records with the most-streamed NFL games in US history on Wednesday, leaving the NBA trailing in its wake.
The NFL and Nielsen said 65 million U.S. viewers tuned in for at least one minute of one of the two NFL games.
LeBron James has been handed a brutal reality check after his dig at the NFL on Christmas Day
Netflix’s NFL viewing figures, which included the Chiefs game, crushed the NBA’s ratings
The Baltimore Ravens’ 31-2 victory over the Houston Texans averaged 24.3m while Kansas City’s 29-10 win at Pittsburgh averaged 24.1m according to early viewer figures released by Nielsen on Thursday.
The NBA’s five-game slate averaged about 5.25m viewers per game across ABC, ESPN and its platforms, according to the league and Nielsen.
Even though the NBA had the sports calendar to itself on December 25 for many years, the NFL has made Christmas one of its tentpole events during the regular season, joining Kickoff Weekend and Thanksgiving.
Hans Schroeder, the executive vice president of NFL Media, took James’ comments in jest while also being joyful about the first season of the league’s three-year partnership with Netflix.
‘The numbers speak for themselves and LeBron can have his own view, and I’m sure more people will look at that because of this,’ he said.
‘But, you know, we’re focused on the NFL and we’re thrilled with the results this year with the Christmas on Netflix and we´re excited to continue to build that over the next couple of years.’
Both NFL games surpassed the previous mark of 23m for last season’s AFC wild-card game between the Miami Dolphins and Chiefs on Peacock.
Viewership for Ravens-Texans peaked with the Beyoncé Bowl. The nearly 13-minute halftime performance averaged over 27m viewers.
Viewership for Ravens-Texans peaked with the Beyoncé Bowl – her 13-minute halftime show
The viewer figures include the audience on Netflix, mobile viewership on NFL+ and those who tuned in on CBS stations in Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Baltimore and Houston.
Global ratings and final US numbers are expected to be available on Tuesday.
The NFL’s Christmas numbers decreased from last season, but not at the rate that usually happens when something goes from broadcast to streaming.
Last year’s three games averaged 28.68m viewers. The early afternoon contest between the Las Vegas Raiders and Chiefs led the way, averaging 29.48m on CBS.
Once global and Netflix’s first-party data is released, both Christmas games should surpass 30 million.
The games were the second and third-most popular live titles in Netflix history, surpassed only by the November 14 fight between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson.
That bout averaged a worldwide audience of 60m and peaked at 65m concurrent streams, including 38 million concurrent streams in the United States.
According to Netflix, 108m worldwide viewed at least one minute of the fight card.
There will be at least two NFL games on Christmas next year, but with the holiday falling on a Thursday it is more likely to be three with two afternoon and one prime time. The NFL has had three Thanksgiving Day games since 2006.
The NBA’s five-game slate averaged about 5.25m viewers per game across ABC and ESPN
‘Everything Netflix put into the entire day, from the quality of the stream, the production and the graphics, made it feel like such a special Christmas Day,’ Schroeder said. ‘You had the opening with Mariah (Carey), you had Beyonce, it all took things to another level.’
The biggest victory for Netflix though is that there were very few streaming complaints. The only gripe from most is that the stream did not immediately go to live action if someone tuned in after the game started.
‘Bringing our members this record-breaking day of two NFL games was the best Christmas gift we could have delivered,’ Bela Bajaria, Netflix´s chief content officer, said in a statement.
‘We’re thankful for our partnership with the NFL, all of our wonderful on-air talent, and let´s please not forget the electrifying Beyoncé and the brilliant Mariah Carey.’
The NBA said all five Christmas games on its schedule – San Antonio at New York in Victor Wembanyama´s holiday debut, Minnesota at Dallas, Philadelphia at Boston, Denver at Phoenix and Lakers-Warriors – saw year-over-year viewership increases.
The NBA’s lineup saw an 84% rise over 2023. One reason for the increase is that all five games were on ABC, compared to two last year.
The Lakers’ 115-113 victory over the Warriors – a game pitting Olympic teammates James and Stephen Curry – averaged 7.76m viewers and peaked with about 8.32m viewers toward the end of the contest, the league said.
Those numbers represent the most-watched NBA regular season game in five years.
