Beyoncé will headline the halftime show during Netflix Inc.’s maiden foray into live NFL games this Christmas, a big score for a US company betting big on live sports and mega-events.
Netflix, which in May secured the rights to air two National Football League games this Christmas, dropped the surprise announcement after streaming one of the most-watched boxing matchups of all time. The Grammy-winning artist will perform songs from her latest Cowboy Carter album for the first time during a contest between the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens in her hometown. She’s expected to invite “special guests,” Netflix said without elaborating.
“Your early Christmas wish has been granted,” it said in a statement.
Netflix is twinning the NFL and Beyoncé at a time the world’s biggest video streaming platform is trying to draw more audiences and juice its fledgling advertising business. Friday’s boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul drew a record 65 million viewers, though users complained widely about glitches.
Sports is considered the most valuable live programming in the world. Executives at Netflix have touted the idea of a Christmas Day event that could bring in millions of viewers at once. And few live events are a bigger draw for viewers or advertisers in the US than the NFL, which accounts for the majority of the most-watched live-TV broadcasts in the country every year.
The Texans-Ravens will come on after Super Bowl victors Kansas City Chiefs play the Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 25. The pair of games marks the first time Netflix airs live football.
The company is expected to gain 10 million viewers in the fourth quarter thanks to such spectacle events, as well as the release of the second season of Squid Game on Dec. 26, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. The streaming platform will also bring WWE shows including Raw and Smackdown starting January 2025 to big markets.