Steve Bornstein

Title: President/CEO, NFL Networks;

EVP, NFL Media

Education: BS, U of Wisconsin

Why Him? During the NFL’s egregious battle for a new CBA in February, NFL Network experienced a eureka moment. Its ratings soared, thanks to 24/7 coverage of the lockout and pending agreement. While foremost competitor ESPN also aired baseball, NBA, hockey and other sports, Bornstein’s NFL proved itself a go-to destination for off-the-field news and information. Apparently viewers stayed put: By November, Bloomberg reported that NFL attracted a record 32.1 million viewers in the NFL season’s first nine weeks, up from 31.6 million last year. Primetime weekday viewers rose 21%, while Sunday shows were up 17%, according to the net. In addition, NFL’s digital platforms, including NFL.com, saw a 64% increase in page views, while unique users rose 37%.

Diversification: NFL Network also shows games from the Arena Football League, Canadian Football League, college games and replays of NFL matches from the previous Sunday. Its coverage also includes shows “A Football Life,” “NFL Total Access,” “NFL Fantasy Live,” “No Huddle,” GameDay,” “Around The League” and “NFL Films Presents.”

Year Ahead: NFL Net is now in almost 60 million homes. Will its move into diversified news and complementary programming help it keep driving down the field? ?

The Daily

Subscribe
Friday–May 8

Pitcher Ready to Play Ball as WICT CEO

Tracy Pitcher built part of her leadership foundation with the help of The WICT Network . Now she’s responsible for shaping what that experience looks like for the next generation.

Read the Full Issue
The Skinny is delivered on Tuesday and focuses on the cable profession. You'll stay in the know on the headlines, topics and special issues you value most. Sign Up

Calendar

Jun 4
2026 Cynopsis Sports Awards Presented in partnership with Cablefax
Jul 10
2026 Top Ops AwardsTop Ops Awards Entry Deadline
Nov 3
2026 Most Powerful Women Awards2026 Most Powerful Women Awards
Full Calendar

Jobs

Seeking an INDUSTRY JOB or hiring for one?
VIEW JOBS

In conjunction with our sister brand, Cynopsis, we are offering hiring managers a deep pool of media-savvy, skilled candidates at a range of experience levels and sectors. The result will be an even more robust industry job board, to help both employers and job seekers.

Contact us at marketing@cynopsis.com, for more information about posting a job on the website and our Jobs newsletter, sent twice weekly to 85,000 media professionals.