Amazon Prime tags additional NFL game to boost pre-Christmas ecommerce

The USA’s biggest sports league, the NFL, has extended its partnership with Amazon Prime, granting the streaming platform an additional live game on ‘black Friday’, the day after Thanksgiving. The additional game, added from 2023, builds on Amazon Prime’s package of ‘Thursday night football’ live rights (secured in an 11-year deal).

On the surface, the deal makes sense because it gives Amazon Prime additional game time during the holiday season. But there is a deeper motivation at play. Black Friday is also regarded as the starting point of the pre-Christmas shopping season. Amazon has worked hard to leverage its sports rights in a way that benefits its ecommerce platform, so the addition of this fixture will boost that strategic goal.

It’s unusual for sports rights holders to utilise their inventory in such a granular way – but it does suggest a shift towards a more data-driven approach to negotiations. For NFL, the deal means it now has partnerships with NBC, CBS, Fox and Amazon across the Thanksgiving period. Amazon Prime is currently in the NFL’s good books, helping revitalise the Thursday night slot through its marketing support and onscreen investment. Around 10 million people in the US are watching live fixtures each week.