Wisconsin Senator attacks NFL, Netflix paywalls for NFL fans

These days, the NFL pawning off some of the most interesting matchups from its schedule is standard practice.

The league has allowed Amazon Prime to exclusively broadcast its Thursday night slate since 2022. Games on holidays or holiday-like days outside of Thanksgiving Day are a relatively new phenomenon in general. Still, after a few years of the NFL giving football fans over-the-air access to Christmas Day games, streaming giant Netflix began broadcasting Christmas games on its platform, and behind another cruel $8.99 paywall, in 2024.

This year, as the NFL continues to intrude on every inch of ground we give it in our lives, there will also be a Thanksgiving Eve game for the first time. (Does no one call that "Friendsgiving" anymore?) The matchup between the ever-popular Wisconsin cultural institution, the Green Bay Packers, and the fellow Super Bowl contender, the Los Angeles Rams, will, of course, be on Netflix. Predictably, it will not be readily accessible to fans unless they're willing to shell out a little extra money to the inevitable Netflix machine.

That fact bothers Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin.

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In response to the NFL and Netflix putting the Packers-Rams game behind a paywall, the Democratic politician released a statement lambasting both organizations for the decision. The crux of her argument? Local sports fans should be able to watch their beloved sports teams together without worrying about additional costs. Oh, and well, using the decision to promote her "For The Fans Act," a bill centered on guaranteeing that local fans always have a free option to watch their teams play, regardless of who is broadcasting any given individual game.