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- Tencent Sports will live stream one weekly NFL game for free
- NFL RedZone and NFL Draft also included in new content offering
- Tencent first acquired NFL rights under a three-year deal in 2017
The National Football League (NFL) has launched a new subscription streaming service in China as part of a new and expanded digital media rights partnership with internet giant Tencent.
The platform, which launched ahead of the 2020 NFL season, includes live coverage from every game, as well as a raft of shoulder content, including on-demand game replays.
As part of the deal, Tencent Sports will stream one live NFL game per week for free, and is also providing additional NFL content across it digital platforms.
NFL RedZone, the Hard Knocks documentary series and coverage of the NFL Draft is also included on the subscription service, while audio is available in both English and Chinese.
“The NFL fanbase in China continues to grow and become more enthusiastic,” said Richard Young, the general manager of the NFL’s China office. “They hope to see more personalised NFL content, and Tencent Sports’ NFL membership products will provide full live broadcasts, game highlights, a full range of services such as RedZone live broadcast, highlights, bilingual in Chinese and English, and HD broadcasting.”
Zhao Guochen, general manager of Tencent Sports, added: “We believe that the NFL and Tencent Sports’ joint membership service will inject new vitality into the development of NFL in China.”
Tencent first acquired rights to the NFL under a three-year deal signed in 2017. According to the company’s latest audience figures, Tencent’s platforms experienced a 56 per cent in viewership during the 2019 regular season, as well as 700 million views of NFL videos.
The National Football League (NFL) has launched a new subscription streaming service in China as part of a new and expanded digital media rights partnership with internet giant Tencent.
The platform, which launched ahead of the 2020 NFL season, includes live coverage from every game, as well as a raft of shoulder content, including on-demand game replays.
As part of the deal, which was first reported by SportBusiness, Tencent Sports will stream one live NFL game per week for free, and is also providing additional NFL content across it digital platforms.
NFL RedZone, the Hard Knocks documentary series and coverage of the NFL Draft is also included on the subscription service, while audio is available in both English and Chinese.
“The NFL fanbase in China continues to grow and become more enthusiastic,” said Richard Young, the general manager of the NFL’s China office. “They hope to see more personalised NFL content, and Tencent Sports’ NFL membership products will provide full live broadcasts, game highlights, a full range of services such as RedZone live broadcast, highlights, bilingual in Chinese and English, and HD broadcasting.”
Zhao Guochen, general manager of Tencent Sports, added: “We believe that the NFL and Tencent Sports’ joint membership service will inject new vitality into the development of NFL in China.”
Tencent first acquired rights to the NFL under a three-year deal signed in 2017. According to the company’s latest audience figures, Tencent’s platforms experienced a 56 per cent in viewership during the 2019 regular season, as well as 700 million views of NFL videos.
SportsPro has approached NFL China for further comment and clarification
