NFL Network News: Not All Sportsbook Fans Can Get the NFL Network. If you bet the NFL at the sportsbook then you probably love the NFL Network. They have great highlights, excellent pregame shows and they show live games. The problem for many sportsbook online bettors is that they don’t get the NFL . If you have cable television then you may not get the NFL Network. The NFL has still not worked out an agreement with some of the major cable companies in the United States. If you live in New York City, St. Louis, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Orlando and many other big markets, you could be left out in the cold when it comes to the NFL .
Not having the NFL Network didn’t used to be a big deal but it is now since the network broadcasts eight live games each season. Many people have signed up with Direct TV simply because they have the NFL Network while the cable company does not. The latest figures show that about 56.3 million households have the NFL Network. Those are really not very good numbers considering the MLB Network has been in existence for only two years and they have almost the same number with 55.3 million households.
The NFL has not been able to work out an agreement with cable companies and it is all about money. The NFL has wanted too much from the cable companies and many of them simply won’t pay the money. Most cable companies will not put the NFL Network on the basic cable package. If they put it on the basic package they would have to raise rates and they can’t afford to do that as they are in competition with DirecTV and Dish. Some cable companies have put the NFL Network on their premium packages but that hasn’t made customers happy. Comcast went to court over the issue and it was settled as Comcast agreed to put the NFL Network on a basic digital package. Other cable companies like Time Warner, Charter Communications, Cable One, and Mediacom Communications have not given in to the NFL. The NFL has not compromised and fans have been the ones to suffer.
The NFL Network 2010 schedule begins with Baltimore at Atlanta in Week 10. The other games on the NFL Network are Chicago at Miami on Nov. 18, Cincinnati at the Jets on Thanksgiving, Houston at Philadelphia on Dec. 2, Indianapolis at Tennessee on Dec. 9, San Francisco at San Diego on Dec. 16, Carolina at Pittsburgh on Dec. 23 and Dallas at Arizona on Christmas night.