YouTube targets TV dollars with NFL deal, bingeable ‘shows' from creators
YouTube announced a range of initiatives designed to attract more TV ad dollars to its platform at Brandcast, its annual Upfront event for advertisers. Notably, the Google-owned video service is expanding its relationship with the NFL and plans to exclusively stream the NFL's first Friday game of the 2025-2026 season. It's also preparing to pilot a new way for creators to reach the audience that watches YouTube on TV through easily organized and bingeable TV shows.
The latter was first announced at YouTube's Made On YouTube event last September, where CEO Neal Mohan explained that creators making a majority of their revenue on TV screens was up more than 30% year-over-year. A new feature being offered to select creators in the pilot program will allow them to organize their content into seasons and episodes — just like a 'real' TV show.
In addition to new efforts around 'shoppable TV' and tools that let advertisers target major cultural moments like awards season or The PGA Championship, for instance, the company is once again sending a message to advertisers that it's not just an online video service, it's actually the new way people watch 'TV.'
As part of its NFL deal, YouTube says it will exclusively stream the first Friday game hosted in São Paulo, Brazil, to a worldwide audience. This marks the first time that YouTube has served as a live broadcaster for the NFL, it notes. (In the U.S., the game will be available to YouTube TV subscribers.) The company pointed out that users last year watched over 350 million hours of NFL content on the platform, according to its internal data, and had pulled in over 6 million live views when it streamed the NFL's Super Bowl LIX Flag Football Game. Its expanded deal with the NFL will see it streaming that Flag Football game over multiple years to come.
For creators, YouTube's pitch focuses on bringing their content to the living room.
Hundreds of creators will be a part of the initial pilot, expected to launch in the U.S. this summer, that will allow them to organize their content into a viewing experience designed for the big screen. Creators like Michelle Khare's Challenge Accepted and Good Mythical Morning with Rhett & Link will use the new tools to turn their content into 'seasons' and 'episodes,' to make their content more bingeable on TV.
The company is also rolling out ways to shop from YouTube with QR codes and other send-to-phone functionality, and will look to Gemini AI to match ads to popular, relevant content.
During Brandcast, YouTube featured various case studies from brands like Volvo, Inspire Brands (Dunkin'), Hilton, and State Farm, that have used its advertiser tools to reach their audiences. It also reminded marketers that YouTube has been No. 1 in streaming watch time in the U.S. for more than two years, putting it ahead of Netflix, Disney, and Prime Video as of March 2025. The company also touted its more recent focus on podcasts, where it now sees over 1 billion monthly active podcast users.
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