The NBA experienced a significant decline in ratings on Christmas Day, while the NFL continued to enjoy a surge in viewership. The stark contrast between the two leagues' performance on this holiday has raised concerns about the NBA's hold on its marquee showcase event.

As the NFL set new ratings records during its Christmas Day tripleheader across CBS, Fox, and ABC, the NBA struggled to compete. The Raiders-Chiefs matchup on CBS attracted a staggering 29 million viewers, marking the network's most-watched Christmas Day broadcast ever. Similarly, the Eagles-Giants game on Fox garnered a similar viewership, while ABC's Ravens-49ers clash in primetime drew an impressive 27 million viewers, making it the second most-watched Monday Night Football game since 1996. These numbers not only reached astronomical heights, but also represented significant increases compared to the previous year.

In contrast, the NBA presented a quintuple-header primarily on ESPN. However, facing tough competition from the all-day NFL action and losing some ABC simulcasts, the NBA's ratings were dishearteningly low. The most-watched game was the Lakers-Celtics showdown with 5 million viewers, followed by Warriors-Nuggets in the early afternoon window with 4.1 million viewers. The Knicks-Bucks matchup at Noon ET attracted 2.5 million viewers, while the evening games, Heat-Sixers and Mavs-Suns, barely surpassed the 1 million mark.

Throughout the day, the NBA consistently trailed behind the NFL, with a viewership gap of 6 to 1. The decline was evident across all NBA games, ranging from an 18% decrease for Lakers-Celtics to a staggering 73% decline for Sixers-Heat, according to data from Sports Media Watch. Some of this can be attributed to not airing on ABC and ESPN and facing competition from Monday Night Football. Nevertheless, the overall decrease is concerning. The only silver lining for the NBA is that Lakers-Celtics remains the most-watched game of the season so far, narrowly surpassing the viewership of the Lakers-Pacers In-Season Tournament championship game.

It is disheartening to witness the NFL overshadow what was once the NBA's standout regular season showcase on Christmas Day. Despite the NBA still drawing a substantial audience with 5 million viewers for Lakers-Celtics, the league will need to address this downward trend, particularly considering that less than a decade ago, it consistently achieved Christmas Day games with over 10 million viewers, without NFL competition.

The future success of the NBA on Christmas will likely depend on whether the NFL decides to schedule games on the same day. The competition from the football league has undoubtedly impacted the NBA's viewership numbers, forcing the NBA to strategize and find new ways to capture audience attention on this traditional holiday.