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CBS Thursday Night Football is coming during the 2014 NFL season, and while limited to one year, any success could result in an extension.
The National Football League announced on Wednesday that it had awarded the TV rights to eight Thursday games to CBS. The NFL Network has carried the Thursday Night games for nearly a decade but that network's market is limited whereas CBS is seen in nearly every household.
Roger Goodell, the NFL commissioner, credited the NFL Network with building Thursday "into a night for NFL fans." He added in a statement that the NFL's goal "is to bring these games to more fans on broadcast television with unprecedented promotion and visibility for Thursday Night Football on CBS."
“For the online sportsbooks, this is a coup,” remarked Don Shapiro of Gambling911.com. “Individual primetime games broadcast nationally tend to reel in more betting volume. This is the case on Sunday and Monday night with games broadcast on NBC and ESPN, respectively. Thursday night games have driven volume as well, but to a lesser extent.”
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The wagering volume corresponds with the TV ratings. As an example, Thursday Night Football games on the NFL Network attract an average of eight million viewers based on 2013 regular season numbers. Compare this with NBC’s Sunday Night Football package that averaged nearly three times that number at 21 million.
Jim Nantz and Phil Simms of CBS will be the lead broadcasters for all the Thursday games.
- Mary Montgomery, Gambling911.com
