A lot of fans tuned in and dealt with major streaming issues when Jake Paul and Mike Tyson fought at the tail end of 2024. Now that live events like NFL games and wrestling are coming to Netflix, the streamer has started figuring out its buffering issues. (Though Beyoncé did troll the streamer over buffering before her halftime show.) However, as someone who really doesn’t care about most of the sports stuff coming to Netflix’s streaming wing, there's another big change I'd really like to see moving forward.
When I’m looking for new content on Netflix, I’m not one of those people who peruses through what the streamer is recommending to me first. Otherwise I’d just be watching a litany of rom-coms like Lindsay Lohan’s Our Little Secret all the time. One way I typically find new content is by seeing what’s popular on the streamer both in the U.S. and globally, and checking out the new content on the Netflix schedule from there.
This is normally great. A lot of times there’s overlap on both the U.S. and global lists, and it can help me see what will likely be renewed. It also gives me options in a whole bunch of different genres of TV content. However, one thing I’ve noticed this week is that the top two slots on Netflix's Top 10 list have been devoted to NFL Christmas GameDay content. Take a look.
So where am I going with this?
Why Netflix’s Top 10 TV List Should Change With Live Sports
My big issue is that I personally don't want to see live TV events that recently happened on Netflix's Top 10 list. I get why it's happening now. The NFL Christmas day games garnered more than 40 million hours of viewership apiece, with more than 14 million households tuning in for the Ravens vs Texans and roughly the same for the Chiefs vs. Steelers game--at least at the time the two made the Top 10 list.
It's clear that sports content is popular, and I'd be willing to bet there is some overlap between subscribers who watch sports and subscribers who watch original shows, but I'd also be willing to bet a lot of people are in the same boat as I am. I cannot emphasize enough how little I care about sports, and particularly live sporting events that already happened several days ago.
Meanwhile, from what I'm seeing, the more live events Netflix adds, the more the Top 10 TV list is going to be sports heavy, because sports are popular for a large population of Netflix users. And unlike shows like Black Doves, I don't think users need to be told football games are popular.
Look, I get that a wide variety of types of content show up on Netflix's Top lists from scripted originals to sports to documentary series and stand-up specials. Not all of them are going to interest me.
I also get that Netflix isn't airing a large swathe of live events... yet. With only two live events on the Top 10 list, there are plenty of additional items on the Netflix Top 10 list that allow me to choose from a wide swath of content. But as Netflix moves more and more into live content in order to garner better advertising rates, I hope the streamer comes up with a solution that works for both sports and non-sports fans.
One Way To Fix Netflix's Top 10 List Issue
What I’d like to see Netflix do eventually is add a separate Top 10 list for sports. To me it would be the easiest, and least painful way to separate out audiences and still reveal what content has been most popular on the streamer. That way people who love the WWE and are looking for recent content don’t have to cull through the Stranger Things of the world while people looking for popular originals and new scripted content don’t have to be bogged down by sports.
It may take some time before Netflix has enough sports or live content to be able to fill a whole Top 10 list. I’m not expecting change immediately, but I would just like to know that the list is going to remain to be a really helpful way to find content that is less likely to get canceled after one season, when we know Netflix is likely to cancel content after one season.
As of next week, the WWE's Monday Night RAW is leaving cable and heading to Netflix on January 6. More and more sports are likely to continue getting added. Maybe the Top 10 list isn't a huge priority for the streamer right now, but I hope it will be longterm, as the times they are a-changin,' whether or not people like live sports on Netflix.
