"The NFL has always been committed to being at the forefront of media innovation," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
The NFL will broadcast its first Internet-only game when the Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars play in London this season.
The league announced Wednesday that it selected Yahoo as the exclusive partner to deliver the first-ever live stream of an NFL game to a global audience across devices and for free.
The partnership will bring the NFL’s International Series game in London between the Bills and Jaguars on Oct. 25 to all Yahoo platforms, including Yahoo Sports, Yahoo Screen and Tumblr, which attract more than one billion monthly users.
“The NFL has always been committed to being at the forefront of media innovation,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “Through this partnership with Yahoo — one of the world’s most recognizable digital brands — we are taking another important step in that direction as we continue to closely monitor the rapidly evolving digital media landscape.”
The NFL will extend its digital presence with Yahoo’s global audience, digital advertising capabilities and delivery platforms, which span desktop, mobile, tablet, connected TVs and set-top boxes.
“We’re thrilled that the NFL has chosen Yahoo for this historic opportunity,” said Marissa Mayer, president and CEO of Yahoo. “It marks a significant change in the way users can access this amazing content. The NFL and Yahoo have both long engaged football fans around the world. Our partnership provides the ultimate football experience — with digital availability, designed for the modern fan.”
The Bills-Jaguars game also will be televised in the both the Buffalo (WIVB-TV) and Jacksonville (WTEV-TV) markets at 9:30 a.m. ET.
According to John Ourand of SportsBusiness Daily, Yahoo will be paying “fair market value” for the game.
YouTube reportedly was among the other platforms that bid for the rights to the game, but Yahoo earned the right by paying at least $20 million, according to Peter Kafka of Re/Code.
