Dallas Cowboys fans seeking to stream Monday Night Football’s matchup against the Arizona Cardinals have a reprieve as a last-minute agreement between ESPN and YouTube TV averts a blackout. The deal,reached November 6,2023,restores ESPN channels – including ESPN and ESPN2 – to the streaming platform just hours before the 8:15 PM ET kickoff.
The dispute threatened to leave millions of YouTube TV subscribers without access to the highly anticipated game, as well as other live sports and programming. Negotiations stalled over financial terms, with Disney, ESPN’s parent company, seeking increased carriage fees. The resolution allows fans to continue watching the Cowboys-Cardinals contest,and other ESPN content,without interruption on YouTube TV.
The agreement comes as the NFL continues to navigate the evolving landscape of media rights and streaming services. With increasing numbers of viewers cutting the cord, platforms like YouTube TV have become crucial distribution channels for live sports.A prolonged outage would have impacted not only fans but also the NFL’s viewership numbers and revenue.
beyond the streaming resolution, the Cowboys enter the week 9 game with six players listed as out, including three defensive starters, according to the team’s final injury report. Arizona will be without quarterback Kyler Murray, offering a potential advantage to the Dallas secondary. The Cowboys (5-2) are favored to defeat the cardinals (1-6) in the pivotal NFC matchup.
