NFL Sunday Ticket: League worries football fans are confused on DirecTV, YouTube situation

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Confused about where to watch all of the upcoming NFL games this season. You're not alone.

During the Thursday night game, in which the Detroit Lions beat the Kansas City Chiefs, commercials for satellite and streaming TV provider DirecTV starring Chiefs' stars Travis Kelce and Chris Jones promoted how it "gives you access to every game."

But wait, the broadcast made clear that night's game and "the NFL Kickoff Weekend," was presented by YouTube TV, touted as "the new home of NFL Sunday Ticket."

Since 1994, DirecTV has carried NFL Sunday Ticket, a programming package that lets you watch out-of-market regular season NFL games. In December 2022, Google won the rights to NFL Sunday Ticket, outbidding Amazon and ESPN, and is subscriptions available on its YouTube TV live streaming service and YouTube.

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The National Football League expressed concerns ahead of Thursday night's game that DirecTV's advertising could confuse fans and viewers about where to get NFL Sunday Ticket come Sunday.

"You can only get it on YouTube, you can not get it on DirecTV anymore,” NFL chief business and media officer Brian Rolapp said last week during a conference call, NBC Sports' Mike Florio reported Wednesday. “I think some fans might be confused by that.”

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"Without a doubt," some consumers are confused, said Phillip Swann, editor and publisher of CutYourTVBill.com and TVAnswerman.com, where he's written about the situation.

And on Thursday night, NFL executive vice president of communications Jeff Miller told USA TODAY, "We are aware of consumer confusion resulting from advertising in the marketplace.  The NFL wants its millions of fans to know where to get NFL Sunday Ticket and that we stand against deceptive advertising.”

DirecTV responded Friday with a statement pushing back against the NFL's offensive.

“If consumers are confused, it’s because where to watch which football games is more fragmented than ever," Jon Greer, head of communications at DirecTV, said in a statement to USA TODAY. "Our advertising is clear, and just as we’ve done for 30 years we’ll continue to deliver access to the national, regional and local sports our customers want without having to switch inputs on their TV or leaving the DirecTV experience.”

In a statement to USA TODAY, YouTube said, "It’s disappointing to see this type of confusion in the marketplace. NFL fans deserve a seamless and high quality experience, and we want them to know that YouTube is now where they can go to get every out-of-market Sunday afternoon game in the U.S.”

Why is watching the NFL so confusing?

Most games used to be available on a basic pay TV service. But fewer homes subscribe to cable, satellite and streamed pay TV services – about 71.9 million, down from 82.4 million three years ago, according to Leichtman Research Group. That leaves 50 million or so homes without pay TV.

Other games – they will be local for some fans – are broadcast on CBS, Fox and NBC (Sunday Night Football), ESPN and ABC and ESPN+ (Monday Night Football, plus the Sunday, Oct. 1, Atlanta Falcons-Jacksonville Jaguars game from London, and Saturday, Jan. 6 games), Amazon Prime Video (Thursday Night Football).

If you are a streamer, NBC games appear on Peacock, CBS games are on Paramount+, and NFL Network, which will broadcast four games played outside the U.S., can be subscribed to direct from the NFL with its NFL Plus service, or through live TV services such as DirecTV Stream, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV, and YouTube TV.

So where can I watch NFL Sunday Ticket and see all of the out-of-market games?

Let's get this straight. If you live in the U.S. and want to watch all of the out-of-market NFL games at home, you must subscribe to NFL Sunday Ticket (prices start at $299 for YouTube TV subscribers and $399 for non-subscribers for the full season; prices increase Sept. 19).

Can I get NFL Sunday Ticket on DirecTV?

As Obi-Wan Kenobi told Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, "Many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view."

The reason Kelce says DirecTV "gives you access to every game," is because DirecTV's newest equipment incorporates a DirecTV Sports Central home base into the service.

If you've set up the equipment to connect to the internet, it will connect to your apps such as YouTube, Peacock, etc. That way if you select an NFL game that's out of market – or another sports event such as a college football game on ESPN+, for instance – DirecTV Sports Central will automatically take you to the game. But you must have subscribed to the app, whether its YouTube, YouTube TV, ESPN+, Paramount+ or Peacock.

To be fair, DirecTV competitor Dish Network also touts how you can "get all of your pro and college football all in one place" on its site.

DirecTV is also advertising how new customers can get a $400 Visa reward card when they sign up for NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube for the 2023-2024 season. A stipulation: You must opt into a 2-year DirecTV agreement for the offer. DirecTV has also made special offers available to a limited number of existing customers who had previously subscribed to NFL Sunday Ticket.

DirecTV does still provide NFL Sunday Ticket to about 300,000 restaurants, casinos, bars and businesses across the U.S. It also has the rights to provide the package in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Contributing: Chris Bumbaca.

Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider & mikegsnider.

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