MarketInk: Does Chargers-Chiefs on YouTube signal NFL’s shift to streaming?

The multi-billion-dollar National Football League will take another step towards worldwide marketing and merchandising dominance on Friday, Sept. 5 with the 2025 season-opener live broadcast of the Los Angeles Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs game from Corinthians Arena in San Paulo, Brazil, airing on YouTube.

It will be the first time an NFL game has been exclusively streamed for free (no subscription required) on the YouTube platform.

With kickoff scheduled for 5 p.m. Pacific time, the Chargers-Chiefs rivalry on YouTube has prompted big questions for the professional sports TV industry: Is the NFL transitioning its game broadcasts from traditional over-the-air television networks to streaming-only? Will fans be forced to watching NFL games only on streaming-TV services in the future? Will the NFL someday phase-out over-the-air broadcasts in favor of exclusive streaming deals?

Chuck Dunning, retired TV station vice president and general manager, said today’s TV industry executives are asking those same questions.

“Will the NFL ever give-up over-the-air TV? Well, `ever’ could be a long time,” said Dunning, who worked at San Diego’s XETV-TV Channel 6 for 39 years, including as GM from 2010 to 2017, when the station’s San Diego-based operator ceased operations.

“I’ve been retired for eight years now, but I still keep up with industry developments and I don’t see the NFL giving up over-the-air in the foreseeable future,” Dunning said.

“The most watched TV shows anywhere are still NFL games on broadcast TV. Over-the-air is still king of mass reach, and live sports is a huge lifeline for broadcasters. The NFL always wants to have many partners competing for its lucrative rights.

“And, yes, those rights are a huge cost to TV networks that have advertising as their sole revenue source. But, moving off from over-the-air to streaming TV would be a lose-lose proposition for the NFL and broadcasters.

“If the NFL was to leave OTA TV, it would certainly create serious problems for broadcasters. I think there would be great pushback from the advertising and marketing community, small rural markets and Congress.”

Dunning noted that the NFL has been live-streaming games since 2015, when a regular-season game between the Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars played in London was available only over Yahoo.  

In 2024, the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers opened the season with the NFL’s first Brazil game, which was streamed on Peacock, NBCUniversal’s streaming service. Last season’s AFC wildcard game also was live-streamed by Peacock.

The streaming record for live NFL football is currently held by Netflix, which drew an unduplicated audience of approximately 65 million viewers, according to Nielsen, with a doubleheader on Christmas Day 2024 (Baltimore Ravens vs. Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs vs. Pittsburgh Steelers).

As reported by Barrett Media, the NFL is keenly interested in reach and influence. However, the amount of revenue that local television stations receive from NFL broadcasts is keeping afloat some stations in smaller markets.

“The more the NFL plays into investing in its future with streaming content companies, the less likely those broadcast television stations are to survive,” wrote John Mamola, sports editor and columnist for Barrett Media.

“Follow the money if it’s the NFL,” said Mary Beth McCabe, a marketing professor at Point Loma Nazarene University.

“I worked in TV advertising for 15 years before full-time in academia. The NFL is rights-driven, but they’re not likely to kill the home audience, which includes local television and cable ad sales plus ticket sales at stadiums.”

McCabe sees the Chargers-Chiefs game as the latest effort by the NFL to enhance its brand visibility in South America, as well as Europe.

For the 2025 season, six international games will be available on the NFL Network and NFL+, a streaming service. International matchups this season include Minnesota Vikings vs. Pittsburgh Steelers in Dublin in week No. 4, three games in London between weeks No. 5 and 7, Atlanta Falcons vs. Indianapolis Colts in Berlin in week No. 10 and the Washington Commanders vs. Miami Dolphins in Madrid in week No. 11.

In 2026, the Los Angeles Rams are currently scheduled to play a game in Melbourne, Australia, marking another major milestone in the league’s international expansion.

“The advertising opportunities for the Chargers-Chiefs game will be tremendous,” said McCabe. “TV commercials will be segmented by geography, which will support the telecast financially. The Brazil game will be seen worldwide. Audiences will watch the game for scenes of Taylor Swift watching her fiancé Travis Kelce on the field, as well as commentary from IShowSpeed.”

IShowSpeed, whose real name is Darren Jason Watkins, Jr., is a wildly popular 20-year-old, American YouTuber, streamer and rapper known for his high-energy personality, unpredictable antics and global fanbase.

For the Chargers-Chiefs game, Rich Eisen will lead the coverage as play-by-play announcer, joined by Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner as game analyst. Veteran officiating expert Terry McAuley will provide insights on rules and penalties.

Sideline commentators will include former NFL Network reporter Stacey Dales and YouTube personality Deestroying. The pregame show will broadcast live from Sao Paulo and Los Angeles.

In addition to YouTube, NFL games will air this season on Prime Video for the fourth year in a row, along with Peacock, Paramount+ and Netflix.

YouTube has promoted the Chargers vs. Chiefs with a 30-second spot called “Dueling Cats” that showcase a nod to the Keyboard Cat meme that, according to KnowYourMeme, went viral around 2009 on – where else? – YouTube. The spot features two Keyboard Cats wearing jerseys jamming on their respective keyboards. It is airing on YouTube, TV, digital, social media and international channels in other countries.

“This is a watershed moment,” said Wes Harris, YouTube’s marketing director, as reported by Marketing Brew.

“Consumers are not conditioned to watch live NFL on YouTube, and so we really needed to make a statement and drive undeniable linkage that this is a uniquely YouTube experience. There’s nothing more immediately recognizable than the Keyboard Cat in terms of instantly thinking about YouTube and signaling that this is a YouTube campaign.”

After 56 seasons of games played in San Diego, the Chargers moved to Los Angeles in 2017.

One America News added to YouTube TV’s program lineup

In other YouTube news, One America News Network, a San Diego-based, conservative-leaning television channel, has now been added to YouTube TV’s base package lineup as part of a long-term carriage deal.

Also added to YouTube is A Wealth of Entertainment, a TV channel focusing on luxury lifestyle programming, including travel, real estate, cars, adventure lifestyle and high-end experiences.

Both OAN and AWE are operated by San Diego-based Herring Networks, Inc.

Charles Herring, president of Herring Networks, told Times of San Diego, OAN and AWE launched last week on YouTube TV. An earlier press report said the launch would occur in the fourth quarter of 2025.

“Our recent press release indicated an expected launch in November,” Herring said. “We are pleased it was able to be moved up.”

“We’re excited to bring OAN and AWE to YouTube TV’s ever-growing community of subscribers,” said Richard Levine, OAN and AWE president of distribution.

“This partnership makes it easier than ever for viewers nationwide to connect with our networks, from in-depth news reporting to inspiring entertainment. We’re delighted to be part of the YouTube TV channel lineup.”

Justin Connolly, VP and global head of media at YouTube, said, “Our goal has always been to provide our subscribers with a wide range of content, which is why we’re excited to bring One America News to YouTube TV.

“This partnership gives One America News access to our growing audience, while also giving our subscribers even more choice when it comes to news and entertainment.”

Launched on July 4, 2013, OAN produces 16 hours of independent U.S. and international breaking news coverage on weekdays, featuring live coverage from the White House, Capitol Hill and the Pentagon, in addition to national and international news reports.

The channel also features four, one-hour, weekday, prime-time political talk shows providing analysis, discussion and debate. News bureaus are located in Washington, D.C., and San Diego. In addition to its own bureaus, the network uses several external newsgathering sources, including pool feeds, the Associated Press and Reuters.

AWE, launched in 2004 as Wealth TV before rebranding to AWE in 2013, focuses on luxury lifestyle programming, including awe-inspiring travel and real estate, outrageous cars and spectacular experiences.

The YouTube TV announcement is the latest in a series of major programming announcements for Herring Networks.

In May, Herring announced a new multi-year content carriage agreement with Spectrum TV. The agreement provided OAN access to more than 12 million subscribers. Spectrum TV, operated by Stamford, Conn.-based Charter Communications, is one of the nation’s largest cable and streaming TV providers.

In January of this year, Dish Network and Sling added OAN to all programming packages. Last year, OAN expanded its worldwide presence to 162 million homes across Europe, the Middle East and North Africa through Eutelsat’s flagship Hotbird satellite.

Jack in the Box offers free Curly Fries to fight childhood hunger

During the month of September, in honor of Hunger Action Month, San Diego-based Jack in the Box has announced that customers who donate $1 to nonprofit No Kid Hungry, will receive a coupon for a free small order of curly fries to use on their next visit.

Donations will be accepted either in-store or through the Jack app.

September marks Jack in the Box’s 10th year of support to No Kid Hungry, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that says $1 in grant funding can help provide 10 meals in communities and schools. No Kid Hungry helps children receive three meals a day by supporting programs that serve school breakfasts, after-school meals, and summer lunches in neighborhoods where they’re needed most.

Since 2015, Jack in the Box said its franchisees, team members and guests have raised more than $6 million to fund programs that help provide children with the nutritious meals they need to grow and thrive.

“For the past decade, our restaurants have rallied behind No Kid Hungry because feeding families and strengthening our communities is at the heart of who we are,” said Lance Tucker, CEO of Jack in the Box. “September is one of our favorite months because it’s when we see our team members passionately champion this cause and our guests respond with incredible generosity. And of course, we love showing our thanks in true Jack fashion with free Curly Fries.”

Jack in the Box Inc. operates and franchises Jack in the Box, one of the nation’s largest hamburger chains with approximately 2,190 restaurants across 22 states, and Del Taco, the second largest Mexican-American, quick-service restaurant chain by units in the U.S. with approximately 590 restaurants across 17 states.

Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly on Mondays in Times of San Diego.