The tradition of the NFL on Thanksgiving has a rich history dating back to the league's inception in 1920.
Thanks to the NFL’s efforts, football and family have become synonymous with Thanksgiving Day. In 2026, the NFL will expand that tradition by hosting its first-ever Thanksgiving Eve game on November 25th.
How the Lions started a Thanksgiving Day tradition
Although teams had played games on Thanksgiving as far back as 1920, the Detroit Lions established an annual tradition in 1934 that continues to this day.
In the 1930s, George A. Richards bought the Portsmouth Spartans, relocated them to Detroit and renamed them the Detroit Lions. The team struggled to draw crowds in its early years because it was competing with MLB’s Detroit Tigers, but Richards had a plan to capture the attention of Detroit sports fans.
Richards decided to schedule a game against the Chicago Bears on Thanksgiving Day, hoping the holiday would draw families to the stadium. He was not only the owner of the Lions but also the owner of local radio station WJR, which had ties to the national NBC Blue Network. Richards used his influence in the radio industry to arrange for the Lions–Bears game to become the first nationally broadcast NFL game, airing on nearly 100 stations across the country.
The plan drew thousands of fans to the stadium. The 26,000-seat University of Detroit Stadium sold out, with many more fans turned away at the gates.
Although the Lions lost to the Bears 19–16, the massive turnout and national audience prompted Richards and the Detroit Lions organisation to host a game on Thanksgiving every year. The tradition of football on Thanksgiving was born.
Why do the Lions always play on Thanksgiving?
Since that first time in 1934, the Detroit Lions have hosted a game on Thanksgiving Day every year with the exception of during World War II (1939–1944).
The first game was so successful that the Lions hosted a game every single year in the early afternoon, and the games were so popular that when the league took over scheduling, they continued to uphold the tradition.
Lions All-Time Record on Thanksgiving
The Detroit Lions have a 38-45-2 all-time record on Thanksgiving Day.
Last season, the Lions fell to the Green Bay Packers 31-24 on Thanksgiving day. This year, they will host the Chicago bears at Ford Field, with kickoff scheduled for 1:00 PM Eastern.
Do the Cowboys always play on Thanksgiving?
The Dallas Cowboys were founded in 1960 and struggled to gain fan interest in their early years. After seeing the incredible success of the Lions hosting Thanksgiving Day games, Cowboys General Manager Tex Schramm offered to host a second Thanksgiving game in 1966, a slot no other team wanted.
Although the NFL worried the young franchise would struggle to fill the stadium, 80,259 fans packed the Cotton Bowl to watch the Cowboys defeat the Cleveland Browns.
The Cowboys have hosted a late-afternoon game on Thanksgiving ever since, with the exception of 1975 and 1977, when the NFL temporarily awarded the holiday game to the St. Louis Cardinals to boost their profile.
Cowboys All-Time Record on Thanksgiving
The Dallas Cowboys have a 34-22-1 all-time record on Thanksgiving Day.
In 2025, Dallas defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 31-28 on Thanksgiving day. This year, the franchise will host the Philadelphia Eagles at AT&T Stadium at 4:30 PM Eastern.
Evolution of the NFL's Thanksgiving Day Tradition
Over the years, nearly every NFL franchise has played a game on Thanksgiving Day, cementing the holiday as a staple of the league's calendar.
The modern era has expanded the tradition significantly. In 2006, the NFL added a third prime-time matchup featuring a rotating cast of visiting and home teams. This third evening game, alongside the afternoon contests, has also become formally tied to the late broadcaster John Madden. The annual Madden Thanksgiving Celebration honors his legacy with the presentation of the Madden Thanksgiving MVP trophy and the iconic traditional turkey leg awards handed out to standout players.
Today, Thanksgiving games rank consistently as the league's most-watched regular-season broadcasts. The tradition reached historic heights in 2025 when all three Thanksgiving games set new NFL regular-season viewership records. Notably, the Kansas City Chiefs @ Dallas Cowboys matchup broadcast on CBS and Paramount+ drew 57.2 million viewers, making it the most-watched NFL regular-season game of all time.
NFL teams who have played the most Thanksgiving Day games
Outside of the Lions (85 games) and Cowboys (57 games), the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers have played the most Thanksgiving games with each team playing 38 times. This year, the Bears add another chapter to that legacy by playing their 39th Thanksgiving game, squaring off against their NFC North rivals, the Detroit Lions, in Detroit.
While most of the league has shared the holiday spotlight, the Jacksonville Jaguars remain the only NFL franchise never to have played a game on Thanksgiving. Meanwhile, a select few teams have experienced the holiday just once in their history, with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Carolina Panthers, and Cincinnati Bengals each having made a single Thanksgiving Day appearance.
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