In the ever-changing world of technology in sports, it is an exciting time to be a sports

fan. From endless highlights on social media to being able to get quick updates on your team, the

current-day sports fan has more luxuries than ever. But out of all of these new features, there is

one that stands out amongst the rest as it has taken a whole sport by storm.

NFL RedZone, a unique Sunday-only channel service for the National Football League,

is arguably the most polarizing form of sports intake today. Founded in 2009, the channel offers

“whip around” coverage of the Sunday schedule of NFL games by showing you live look-ins and

the can’t-miss plays of every game instead of full coverage of one. Starting coverage from 1:00

PM EST to 8:00 PM EST, RedZone strongly promotes its commercial-free format. “It was a

foreign concept to me at first, but now I can’t get enough of it.” Mason Ajiboye, a 19-year-old

avid NFL and Seattle Seahawks fan said. Mason isn’t wrong, as the RedZone channel picked up

steam in the late 2010s. Now in the 2020s, it is estimated that 1-1.5 million people tune into NFL

RedZone at least once on any given NFL Sunday according to The Athletic. “It is the perfect

way to watch football. No commercials, you can just turn it on and put the remote down for the

rest of the day.” Ajiboye said.

NFL RedZone is offered by a number of different television providers, with the broadcast

even altering depending on your provider of choice. This includes potentially being shown

different games at different times, different graphics, and even different hosts of the show. Many

other networks and sports have tried to mimic RedZone’s success, such as “ESPN Goal Line” for

College Football and “NBA Crunchtime” for Basketball. “I love it, it is the perfect option for

when my team isn’t playing” Scott McVerry, a 56-year-old Patriots, and NFL fan, said. “I

remember the days when you could only get one game on one channel, and sometimes it
wouldn’t even be your team. I certainly wish this was around earlier, cause I am totally hooked

every Sunday when the Patriots aren’t on.”

Besides dedicated fans who are looking for football action when their team isn’t playing,

RedZone is also very popular among those without a team in the race such as fantasy football

players and sports gamblers. GammWire estimates that RedZone had 5 million – 5.4 million

subscribers during the 2021-2022 NFL season, which continues to climb every year. With a

media giant taking the storm in form of RedZone, will we see this broadcast become the norm

for the NFL and football coverage?

Sources:

Mason Ajiboye (majiboy1@asu.edu )

Scott McVerry ( soxfan624@yahoo.com )

https://theathletic.com/2245508/2020/12/08/the-future-of-nfl-redzone-beyond-episode-no-200-

media-circus/

https://gammawire.com/how-many-subscribers-does-nfl-redzone-have/