The NFL has declared that it will host two games on Christmas Day in 2024, even though Christmas falls on a Wednesday. The four teams involved will play on the Saturday of Week 16, allowing them four days of rest between games. These games will probably be scheduled for the afternoon rather than in prime-time, based on last year’s TV ratings.
Hans Schroeder, the NFL’s executive vice president for media distribution, explained that last year’s highest-rated games on Christmas were the ones played at 1 PM and 4:30 PM ET. Despite being the lowest-rated game, the matchup between Baltimore and San Francisco still drew in a significant audience of 27 million viewers.
Initially, the league didn’t consider playing games on Christmas when it fell on a Tuesday or Wednesday. However, after seeing a 29% increase in viewership from Christmas 2022 to Christmas 2023, they changed their stance. The three games last year averaged 28.7 million viewers, showing strong audience engagement.
Schroeder mentioned that while they initially had reservations about playing on Christmas Day, they reconsidered after looking at the viewership data. As a result, the NFL decided to go ahead with the games on Wednesday, seeing it as an opportunity to please fans.
Although NFL games on Christmas Day aren’t favored by players, coaches, and teams, the high ratings suggest that NFL fans enjoy them.
