YouTube TV Will Continue to Carry NFL RedZone After Landing NFL Sunday Ticket Package

Football fans around the United States got an early Christmas present on Thursday when the NFL officially announced that its popular out-of-market game package NFL Sunday Ticket would be moving from DIRECTV to YouTube TV beginning in the fall of 2023. For the first time ever, Sunday Ticket will be available as a standalone subscription, without having to sign up for a traditional TV plan. However, that has led to a number of questions concerning one of the most important aspects of watching football on any given Sunday. What’s going to happen to NFL RedZone?
YouTube TV entered into a carriage agreement with the NFL to broadcast both the NFL Network and RedZone in 2020, bringing the incredibly popular whip-around show hosted by Scott Hanson to the live TV streaming service. However, now that YouTube TV will have access to all of the games covered on RedZone, some subscribers have voiced concerns about the future of the wall-to-wall, live-look-in show on the streamer.
Well, YouTube TV subscribers, you can relax, because the NFL announced that as part of the deal for Sunday Ticket, the league and Google have extended their carriage deal for both NFL Network and RedZone. So Hanson will continue to bring fans every touchdown from every game during the two afternoon windows without ever having to take a potty break.
“In 2020, the NFL expanded its partnership with a carriage agreement to bring NFL Network and NFL RedZone to YouTube TV subscribers,” the NFL said in a statement. “Under the expanded relationship, the carriage agreement has been extended.”
However, longtime Sunday Ticket subscribers will know that the Hanson-hosted RedZone is not the only RedZone currently available to fans. DIRECTV is actually the home to the original RedZone, hosted by Andrew Siciliano, which launched in 2005, three years before the NFL Network launched its own version. The NFL Sunday Ticket Red Zone differs only slightly from the more accessible edition in that — because it is exclusive to DIRECTV — it can point viewers to what channels they can watch each individual game on via Sunday Ticket while Siciliano runs through highlights from each individual game.
At this point, YouTube TV has not indicated whether or not there will continue to be a dedicated Sunday Ticket version of RedZone, but football fans can rest easy in knowing that the most exciting way to watch an afternoon of professional football will still be available in one form or another.
YouTube TV
YouTube TV is a live TV streaming service with more than 60 channels for $72.99/month. This plan includes local channels, 32 of the top 35 cable channels, and regional sports networks (RSNs) in select markets. The service includes an unlimited DVR.