US' National Football League, Google inks deal for Sunday games on YouTube

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The National Football League (NFL) and Google agreed Thursday to a multiyear deal to allow Sunday games to be viewed next year exclusively on YouTube.

"We're excited to bring NFL Sunday Ticket to YouTube TV and YouTube Primetime Channels and usher in a new era of how fans across the United States watch and follow the NFL," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. "For a number of years we have been focused on increased digital distribution of our games and this partnership is yet another example of us looking towards the future and building the next generation of NFL fans."

While the deal is estimated at around $2 billion per year, according to news reports, AT&T's DirecTV was paying the league $1.5 billion a year for 'Sunday Ticket' games since renewing its agreement in 2014.

"YouTube has long been a home for football fans, whether they're streaming live games, keeping up with their home team, or watching the best plays in highlights," Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube, said in the statement.

The NFL has been focusing on deals with streaming providers in recent years to reach a larger audience. A $1 billion agreement with Amazon for 'Thursday Night Football' was its first streaming deal.

The league, in addition, renewed agreements in March with major television networks, extending distribution rights to 11 years that could total more than $100 billion, according to some estimates.

The multi-year deals included Paramount's CBS, Fox, Comcast's NBCUniversal and Disney which owns ESPN and ABC.