Technologies

NFL Sunday Ticket and YouTube: 8 Things Football Fans Should Know

The biggest thing we don’t know? How much it will cost.

NFL Sunday Ticket is heading to YouTube. After months of speculation, the league and Google announced a partnership to stream all out-of-market football games in the US, starting next football season, in the fall of 2023. The games will be available to watch on YouTube TV and YouTube’s Primetime Channels service.

This is big news, but as a football fan you probably have plenty of questions about this partnership and what it will mean. We don’t have all the information yet, but let’s try to answer some of the biggest questions now.

Will NFL Sunday Ticket be free on YouTube?

It will not be free or even simply included in the base $65 per month YouTube TV package. «There will be a price for Sunday Ticket,» Brent Lawton, vice president of media strategy and business development at the NFL, said in a call with reporters Thursday afternoon.

The NFL and Google have not announced how much Sunday Ticket will cost next season, but you will have to pay some type of subscription fee. In the press release announcing the deal, the league says that Sunday Ticket will be available as «an add-on package on YouTube TV and standalone a-la-carte on YouTube Primetime Channels.»

Lawton says that pricing will be «at YouTube’s discretion» though he noted that «there is sort of a pathway to create some different bundles down the road.» What those bundles might look like or how much they will cost, however, remains unclear.

How much does Sunday Ticket cost now?

DirecTV, which has offered Sunday Ticket since its inception in 1994, charged around $300 for the base Sunday Ticket package this past season. A «Max» version that offered a DirecTV-specific version of RedZone and allowed for multiple streams cost $400 for the season.

Do I need to subscribe to YouTube TV to get Sunday Ticket?

No. Google will offer Sunday Ticket in two ways. One will be an add-on for YouTube TV, the company’s existing live TV streaming service that currently costs $65 per month and is designed for cord-cutters who don’t subscribe to cable TV.

If you don’t want to sign up for YouTube TV, however, you will still be able to get Sunday Ticket through YouTube Primetime Channels.

What are YouTube Primetime Channels?

YouTube Primetime Channels, which launched in November, allows you to subscribe to services like Starz, Showtime and Paramount Plus and watch them directly on YouTube without the need to bounce between individual apps. Each requires a monthly fee. With Primetime Channels, you will be able to sign up for Sunday Ticket on its own for a fee, without needing to also shell out for YouTube TV.

What does Sunday Ticket include? Can I watch my local NFL team?

Sunday Ticket does not have every NFL game. It allows you to watch all «out-of-market» NFL games on Sundays that air on CBS and Fox. Games airing on your local CBS or Fox station, as well as national games on CBS, Fox, NBC, ESPN, NFL Network or streaming services like Amazon and ESPN Plus, are not included. Instead, they’re blacked out on the service.

Sunday Ticket also does not include the NFL playoffs and Super Bowl, which are all nationally televised.

If you pay for YouTube TV, Google’s $65-per-month cable alternative, those CBS, Fox, ESPN and NFL Network channels are already included, so you’ll be able to watch all the NFL action that isn’t tied to a streaming service like Amazon’s Prime Video or ESPN Plus.

If you subscribe through YouTube Primetime Channels, you likely will still need to sign up for a different live TV streaming service or cable package to get the traditional channels and local broadcasts, including games airing on your local CBS or Fox station.

Does YouTube TV still have RedZone?

Yes. YouTube TV has offered the NFL Network and the RedZone channel — the league’s whip-around channel that bounces between games on Sundays — since 2020 as an $11-per-month add-on.

The league said today that «under the expanded relationship, the carriage agreement has been extended.»

When will this Sunday Ticket deal start?

The deal will start with the 2023 NFL regular season, due to kick off next fall. NFL Sunday Ticket for the rest of the 2022 NFL regular season, due to end on Jan. 8, 2023, will remain exclusive to DirecTV.

The NFL confirmed that YouTube will have the Sunday Ticket rights for seven years.

How much is Google paying for NFL Sunday Ticket?

Google and the NFL did not disclose the terms of their deal, but The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Google’s deal with the NFL will see the tech giant pay the league «roughly» $2 billion a year for seven years. It says that the cost, however, could still rise «if certain benchmarks are reached.»

Technologies

The Most Exciting Video Game Rumors and Leaks Ahead of 2026

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, Dec. 17

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Dec. 17.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Nod (off)
Answer: DOZE

5A clue: Naval submarine in W.W. II
Answer: UBOAT

7A clue: Tricky thing to do on a busy highway
Answer: MERGE

8A clue: Heat-resistant glassware for cooking
Answer: PYREX

9A clue: Put into groups
Answer: SORT

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Break up with
Answer: DUMP

2D clue: Falls in line, so to speak
Answer: OBEYS

3D clue: Legendary vigilante who cuts a «Z» with his sword
Answer: ZORRO

4D clue: Rarin’ to go
Answer: EAGER

6D clue: Common reminder for an upcoming appointment
Answer: TEXT

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Technologies

You Can Watch an Exclusive Avatar: Fire and Ash Scene on TikTok Right Now

Disney and TikTok partner on an immersive content hub for James Cameron’s latest movie about the alien Na’vi.

If you’re not quite ready to head to the theater to watch Avatar: Fire and Ash, an exclusive scene preview might sell you on the visual spectacle. As part of a new collaboration with the social media giant, Disney is posting snippets of its new movie to its TikTok account.

This scene isn’t part of any trailer and won’t be posted to other social media accounts, making TikTok the only place you can view it — unless you buy a movie ticket. A first look at the new movie’s scenes isn’t the only Avatar-related bonus on the social media platform right now, either. TikTok has partnered with the house of mouse to bring an entire «immersive content hub» to the app.

A special section of TikTok includes quizzes and educational videos that explore the alien world of Pandora shown off in the movies. On TikTok, you can take a personality quiz to find out what Na’vi clan you most closely align with and unlock a special profile picture border to use on your account.

Science and fiction blend together with a series of videos from real doctors who explain the basis for some of Avatar’s world-building. If you want to learn about exoplanets or how realistic the anatomy of the movie’s alien animals is, these videos will feed your brain while still providing entertainment value.

Perhaps the most enticing part of Disney’s latest social media collaboration is the opportunity for fans to win prizes and trips. TikTok creators who make edits with the #TikTokAvatarContest hashtag are entered into a competition to win Avatar merchandise. The biggest winners will be able to take a trip to visual effects studio Wētā Workshop in New Zealand or visit Avatar director James Cameron’s Lightstorm Entertainment Studio in Los Angeles.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is the third installment in director Cameron’s cinematic passion project. While the first Avatar movie was released in 2009, Cameron didn’t release another entry in the franchise until 2022. In total, there is a five-movie arc planned for the indigo alien Na’vi on the moon of Pandora.

The Avatar movies are known for pushing the boundaries of CGI visual effects in cinema. They are also historically big winners at the box office: the original Avatar is the highest-grossing film of all time, earning $2.9 billion across its theatrical releases. Its sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, is the third-highest-grossing film of all time, trailing Avengers: Endgame. You can stream those movies on Disney Plus.

It remains to be seen whether Avatar: Fire and Ash will financially live up to its predecessors. The film currently has mixed reviews from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.