President Donald Trump Rips NFL's Recent Pivot to Streaming Services: ‘I Don't Like It’

Donald Trump is not a fan of the NFL airing games on streaming services.

In a recent interview with Full Measure, the U.S. president was asked about the league's recent pivot to broadcasting its product through non-traditional platforms (i.e., not through broadcast television), and didn't mince words about his thoughts on the matter.

“They have to be careful because, you know, others have tried this,” Trump said. “And all of a sudden you don’t have a sport anymore. ... There’s something very sad when they take football away from many, many people. Very sad. I don’t like it.”

RELATED: NFL Under Federal Investigation For ‘Anticompetitive Tactics’ Harming Consumers

The United States Department of Justice recently opened an investigation into the NFL regarding “anticompetitive tactics that harm consumers”—a probe that was reportedly triggered by a conversation between Fox chairman Rupert Murdoch and Trump. According to the Wall Street Journal, the media mogul and his top aides warned the president that, “if streamers gained rights to more games, it would kill broadcast networks (like Fox).”

Over the course of the 2025 campaign, the NFL not only broadcasted games on CBS, Fox, ABC, NBC and ESPN but also through streaming services such as YouTube, Peacock, Amazon Prime Video, and Netflix. While the league claims that they are, “the most fan-friendly league” with 87% of its games available on local TV, the reality is—according to Republican senator Mike Lee—consumers would have had to spend almost $1,000 on both cable and streaming subscriptions in order to watch every game this past season.

While Trump seemed to incorrectly interpret this as $1,000 per game, he did make it clear that he doesn’t like the shift—though also said he doesn't know if the government will ultimately intervene.

“I don’t like it,” he continued. “They’re making a lot of money. They could make a little bit less. They could let the people see. You have people that live for Sunday ... they can’t think about anything else, and then all of a sudden, they’re gonna have to pay $1,000 a game. It’s crazy. So, I’m not happy about it.”

The NFL is set to release its 2026 schedule, in full, this coming Thursday, May 14.

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