An ongoing rights dispute between NBC and YouTube TV could leave some fans in the dark for several major sporting events if the two don’t reach an extension agreement by Wednesday.
YouTube’s current deal with NBC will expire at midnight Tuesday unless the two companies reach an extension. If no agreement is reached, YouTube TV subscribers could lose access to NBC until one is.
That could mean no Ohio State football game this weekend. No Notre Dame. No “Sunday Night Football,” the most-watched television program in the nation.
NBC also holds U.S. broadcasting rights for the English Premier League, NASCAR and United States Golf Association events, so fans of those leagues could also temporarily lose access. The NBA is set to return to NBC in October as well.
The companies are locked in a carriage dispute over whether NBC’s parent company, Comcast, will allow YouTube TV to distribute programming that would normally be exclusive to Peacock, the broadcaster’s streaming platform. That would include a Week 17 NFL contest set to run only on Peacock between Christmas and New Year’s, marketed as the “Peacock Holiday Exclusive” game.
That game will be one of five potential matchups: Seattle Seahawks at Carolina Panthers, Arizona Cardinals at Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens at Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans at Los Angeles Chargers and New York Giants at Las Vegas Raiders. NBC has not yet selected which.
Should an extended blackout happen, YouTube said it will offer subscribers a $10 credit.
Our current agreement with NBCU is approaching its renewal date & we’re in active negotiations to continue carrying their content. If we’re unable to reach a fair deal by 9/30, their content may become unavailable on YouTube TV. More here: https://t.co/xkLMSmZa2Z
— TeamYouTube (@TeamYouTube) September 30, 2025
Unequal stakes
Apart from the question of whether Peacock-exclusive shows can be included on YouTube TV alongside NBC’s broadcast programming, the companies remain at odds over the fees tied to a potential extension.
As it stands, YouTube TV pays NBCUniversal $10 per subscriber per month to stream its channels, according to LightShed, a media and technology research firm. Meanwhile, NBCUniversal pays YouTube to advertise Peacock subscription offers.
“Ultimately, the danger for legacy media is that YouTube and its parent company, Google, would be unaffected if YouTube TV collapsed and/or disappeared. By contrast, NBCU or Disney losing 15 percent of its video subscriber base … would be quite painful,” the LightShed analysis said Friday. “That being said, (it’s) not that simple for YouTube either. YouTube is trying to build YouTube TV to drive more and more people to watch YouTube content on television screens, which helps the core YouTube ad business grow and take share from linear TV.”
NBC has recently begun to warn of a possible blackout on its various platforms. A banner across the top of the NBC website reads “YouTube TV may drop your favorite channels,” and takes users to a message that touts its “strong record of completing these network carriage agreements with hundreds of distributors without interruption.”
It has specifically pointed to the gap in economic pressure it faces versus Google, framing the YouTube parent as trying to exert too much control over what viewers can consume. With traditional television viewership struggling, Google is far less dependent on a deal than NBC is.
“Google, with its $3 trillion market cap, already controls what Americans see online through search and ads — now it wants to control what we watch,” NBC said in a statement to Front Office Sports. “YouTube TV has refused the best rates and terms in the market, demanding preferential treatment and seeking an unfair advantage over competitors to dominate the video marketplace — all under the false pretense of fighting for the consumer.”
YouTube responded to that statement with one of its own.
“NBCUniversal is asking us to pay more than what they charge consumers for the same content on Peacock, which would mean less flexibility and higher prices for our subscribers,” it said.
This is YouTube TV’s second carriage dispute in as many months. Its last standoff was with Fox, another major sports broadcaster. In August, the companies announced they had reached a new agreement to prevent a blackout of Fox programming.
“We’re happy to share that we’ve reached an agreement with Fox to keep their content on YouTube TV, preserve the value of our service for our subscribers and offer more flexibility in the future,” YouTube said in an Aug. 28 statement. “This means that Fox channels, including the Fox Broadcast Network, Fox News, and Fox Sports, remain available for our subscribers along with 100+ channels and football fans will not miss any of the action this weekend.”
With less than 24 hours to go, the sides could theoretically reach a short-term deal to prevent a service interruption. That was the approach YouTube TV took with Fox while they negotiated a lasting solution, though that bridge agreement lasted only one day.
NBC’s slate of Saturday college football games features Notre Dame versus Boise State, as well as Ohio State versus Minnesota. “Sunday Night Football” will feature the New England Patriots versus the Buffalo Bills the following day.
(Photo: Robbie Jay Barratt / AMA via Getty Images)
