The Monday Night Football clash between the Los Angeles Chargers and Arizona Cardinals was only available via ESPN’s streaming service, ESPN+, leaving fans furious.

The Monday Night Football slate for Week 7 was another double-header: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers hosted the Baltimore Ravens while the Chargers traveled to Arizona to take on the Cardinals. But only one could be on national television, with the honor given to the Bucs-Ravens contest as Baker Mayfield and two-time MVP Lamar Jackson went head-to-head.

This meant fans across the country were unable to tune into the Chargers’ clash with the Cardinals unless they were subscribed to ESPN+, the network’s streaming service. Aside from local markets in the Phoenix and Los Angeles areas, the prime time game was broadcast exclusively on ESPN+.

NFL fans who wanted to watch the battle between Kyler Murray and Justin Herbert had to subscribe to ESPN+, where plans currently start at $11.99 per month. This meant fans needed to pay $12 just for the rights to watch a single game – and people took to social media to vent their fury.

“I’ve probably got 10 different stations with my cable package that are owned by ABC/Disney/ESPN, but the NFL is so greedy that they have to exclusively stream a Monday night game on ESPN+,” wrote one fan. Another posted: “The fact that they are further pay-walling the more interesting game on MNF makes me even less likely to subscribe for ESPN+ out of protest.”

“I really wish @espn and @Disney weren’t a bunch of crooks and I could watch the closer football game without having to shell out more money to watch ESPN+ ‘The Ocho’,” another fan added. One disgruntled follower was able to find a silver lining in the streaming decision: “We all hate NFL games on streaming apps but at least ESPN+ is better than Peacock and Amazon.”

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The 3-2 Chargers took on the 2-4 Cardinals on the road as part of the Monday Night Football double-header

The 3-2 Chargers took on the 2-4 Cardinals on the road as part of the Monday Night Football double-header ( 

Image:

Getty Images)

Last season, the wild-card matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins became the first postseason game to be exclusively aired on a streaming service. However, NBC’s Peacock suffered several errors throughout the broadcast, and fans were far from pleased with the Peacock viewing experience.

The Peacock app ultimately failed to deliver, perhaps struggling with the volume of people attempting to watch the AFC action. NFL fans were furious, taking to social media to complain about the streaming service amid the wild-card matchup which saw over 1,200 fans register issues with Downdetector.

This is the modern NFL and sports-watching experience, where more money needs to be put into more subscriptions in order for fans to follow their favorite sports. The Chargers-Cardinals clash won’t be the only game available exclusively on a subscription service, either; the Green Bay Packers season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil was only available on Peacock.

Netflix will also air two games on Christmas Day as the Chiefs take on the Pittsburgh Steelers while Jackson’s Ravens face the Houston Texans.