Football is back! The 2025 NFL season kicks off with a game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys, followed by a special Friday game in São Paulo, Brazil, between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers. Are you ready to watch some football? This season, NFL games will air across 10+ channels and streaming platforms. 

If you're worried about the challenge of following your favorite team throughout the year, from the NFL season opener to the 2026 Super Bowl, Yahoo Sports has you covered. Here's your playbook for how to watch the 2025-26 NFL season. 

How to watch the 2025 NFL season: 

Dates:Sept. 4, 2025 - Feb. 8, 2026

TV channels: ESPN, NBC, CBS, Fox, ABC and NFL Network

Streaming: Prime Video, Peacock, ESPN+, Paramount+, NFL+, Netflix

2025 NFL season opening week schedule: 

Week 1 of the NFL season will open with the Philadelphia Eagles hosting the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday, September 4, 2025. The 2025 NFL season's opening game will air nationally on NBC at 8:20 p.m. ET — it'll also stream live on Peacock and NFL+. Spanish coverage of the game will air on Telemundo and Universo. 

The following day, the Kansas City Chiefs will play the Los Angeles Chargers in Brazil for an NFL International game that will stream exclusively on YouTube (for free!). 

NFL Week 1 schedule: 

All times Eastern.

Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025

• Eagles vs. Cowboys: 8:20 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

Friday, Sept. 5, 2025

• Chiefs vs. Chargers in São Paulo: 8:15 p.m. ET (free on YouTube)

Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025

• Las Vegas Raiders vs. New England Patriots: 1 p.m. (CBS)

• Pittsburgh Steelers vs. New York Jets: 1 p.m. (CBS)

• Miami Dolphins vs. Indianapolis Colts: 1 p.m. (CBS)

• Arizona Cardinals vs. New Orleans Saints: 1 p.m. (CBS)

• New York Giants vs. Washington Commanders: 1 p.m. (FOX)

• Carolina Panthers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: 1 p.m. (FOX)

• Cincinnati Bengals vs. Cleveland Browns: 1 p.m. (FOX)

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Atlanta Falcons: 1 p.m. (FOX)

• Tennessee Titans vs. Denver Broncos: 4:05 p.m. (FOX)

• San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks: 4:05 p.m. (FOX)

• Detroit Lions vs. Green Bay Packers: 4:25 p.m. (FOX)

• Houston Texans vs. Los Angeles Rams: 4:25 p.m. (CBS)

• Baltimore Ravens vs. Buffalo Bills: 8:20 p.m. (NBC)

Monday, Sept. 8, 2024

• Minnesota Vikings vs. Chicago Bears: 8:15 p.m. (ESPN/ABC)

How to watch NFL games in 2025: 

Many NFL games are broadcast on local channels, so if you're looking to catch an in-market game, it may be as simple as turning on your TV (or setting up a digital TV antenna) or finding a live TV streaming service that carries the correct RSN (Regional Sports Network). If you want to watch out-of-market games, a $7 monthly subscription to NFL+ will let you watch every out-of-market-game local and primetime game in the season on your phone — but only a select few regular season games on your TV. You could also spring for the uber-expensive NFL Sunday Ticket package to get every out-of-market Sunday game of the season. 

When it comes to nationally broadcast games, NFL games typically air across ESPN, NBC, CBS, Fox, ABC and NFL Network. Thursday Night Football games stream exclusively on Amazon Prime Video, select football games will stream exclusively on Peacock, games on CBS will stream live on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME and Monday Night Football games will air on ESPN or ABC and stream on the newly revamped ESPN+ this season. That's six channels and four streaming platforms to keep up with this season — and that's not counting your local RSN's for in-market games and an NFL+ or NFL Sunday Ticket subscription for out-of-market games. Plus, Netflix is once again hosting at least two Christmas Day matches, so add that subscription into the mix. And we can't forget about Fox One, Fox's first streaming service, a place where you can also stream games airing on FOX (if you don't already have access to it). 

Confused? You're not alone. Here's a breakdown of the platforms we recommend checking out ahead of the 2025 NFL season, so that come game time, tuning into your favorite team's games will be as easy as simply turning on the TV.

How to watch NFL games in person: 

Tickets for the 2025 NFL season are on sale now. 

Every way to watch NFL games this season:

To recap, here are all the ways you can watch NFL games in 2025.