Netflix and Disney’s ESPN saw a return to normalcy with simple Christmas messages, as the two sports brands battled for viewer supremacy on the holiday.
While the idea of a war on Christmas has been seen as something of a meme in recent years, bans on Christmas trees and “Christmas-themed items” still happen on occasion.
If football and basketball fans are tired of hearing “happy Holidays” instead of “merry Christmas,” both the NBA and NFL seemed keen to focus on “merry Christmas” this year in order to garner fuzzy feelings instead of viewer outrage.
The NFL’s first broadcast on Netflix came with focus on Christmas, particularly the message of “merry Christmas.”
Stars like Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson even ran around like a lunatic with a Santa coat on, while Kansas City Chiefs players Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce sported theirs in the locker room.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid then appeared as Santa Claus himself to wish all his players a “merry Christmas.”
All of this was presented officially by the NFL. Yes, the league wants ratings — and it worked.
For the Chiefs’ game versus the Pittsburgh Steelers, Netflix saw its second-most popular live broadcast, with viewers from over 200 different countries.
According to the Mirror, the platform had its highest concurrent viewership on Christmas Day in four years, with one-third of those viewers tuning in to the football game.
‘I love the NFL. But Christmas is our day.’
The NBA was clearly looking to compete, and since basketball historically is the go-to sport for Christmas Day in the United States, the league pulled out all the stops. Although the viewership numbers aren’t yet known, the NBA had high hopes by pitting LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers against Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors.
After a thrilling two-point victory, James made it clear that the NBA was in it to win.
“I love the NFL. I love the NFL. But Christmas is our day,” James told an ESPN reporter, reciprocating a “merry Christmas” of his own.
Lakers guard Austin Reaves, who scored a historic triple-double, had his own “merry Christmas” message pushed out on official NBA channels after the game.
Disney-owned ESPN took advantage of childhood memories during its broadcast as well, invoking Mickey Mouse and all his friends for what seemed like an awfully unfair pickup basketball game for whoever had Pluto or Chip ‘n’ Dale on their team.
In the end, Mickey’s Christmas wish came true, the tree was lit, and Santa flew away, leaving the Disney characters to ball on their own personal Christmas court.
It goes without saying that major sports leagues know that falling back on wholesome messaging can win back audiences, but only time will tell if the NBA can beat its 4 million viewers from last Christmas. That number was more than 10 million in 2018, per Sports Media Watch, but the likelihood of that number being reached unfortunately seems like a pipe dream for the league.
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