Brendan Carr Will Be An American Hero If He Keeps NFL Games On TV

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr will be an American hero if he can keep NFL games on television and away from streaming.

Last week, the Department of Justice opened an investigation into the NFL over whether the league used anticompetitive tactics against fans. Carr suggested Tuesday that the probe is related to the league taking games off television in favor of streaming services.

"I think long-term there’s been a great partnership between broadcasters and sports leagues that’s helped them to grow their fan base, and Americans have enjoyed sitting down after the day, turning on TV, and very quickly, and usually for free, finding their favorite team playing, and that experience has become frustrating for lots of Americans over the years," Carr told CNBC.

"I do think there’s a point at which the NFL reaches a tipping point where they’re sticking too many games behind a paywall, in which case it really raises a lot of questions about the scope of that."

Netflix and NFL signage advertising the NFL's two Christmas Day marquee games streaming live on Netflix on December 01, 2024, in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images)

Carr said last month that officials are reviewing thousands of comments on whether a significant share of sports should remain free on broadcast television.

"We actually got thousands and thousands of comments. It was a big number for the FCC. The vast majority so far, based on an initial assessment, support keeping a significant portion of these sports games on free, over-the-air broadcast TV," he said.

Carr has a rare opportunity to bring Americans of all political affiliations together.

A new Fox News poll found that nearly 6 in 10 sports fans say they have skipped watching a game at least a few times in the past year because it was too expensive. Another 72% of fans said that major sporting events should be required to stay on free broadcast television, not behind streaming paywalls.

Estimates say that paying for all the channels and services that carry the NFL this season could cost fans around $800.

And that number is expected to rise.

(Getty Images)

The expectation is that the NFL will opt out of its current media rights deals in 2029 and seek more money from streaming services. The idea of a streaming-only Super Bowl became more realistic earlier this year when YouTube secured the exclusive rights to air the Oscars starting in 2029.

Current NFL streaming partners Amazon Prime, Netflix, and YouTube could all be interested in airing the first-ever streaming-only Super Bowl.

That is, unless the DOJ and Carr can prevent it.

The NFL is likely to argue that it still partners with television networks and only sells some games to streaming services because they pay more. In theory, any traditional network could bid for the league’s newly created five-game package, expected to include games on Thanksgiving Eve, Week 1 in primetime, Black Friday, and Christmas Day. The issue is that traditional networks often lack the financial resources to compete with major streaming companies.

The outcome of DOJ’s investigation could also affect other leagues. While the NFL is the biggest league in America, MLB and the NBA have also moved games from television to streaming in recent years.

America is rooting for Brendan Carr.