Fans divided over Carrie Underwood’s new Sunday Night Football theme
Carrie Underwood’s rock-focused reworking of the long-running anthem debuted for NBC’s first Sunday Night Football broadcast of the 2026 season and drew mixed reactions online.
Some NFL fans are pushing back against a major change to one of the most familiar parts of the football season: Carrie Underwood’s “Sunday Night Football” opening theme. The country music star debuted a new rock-focused version of the long-running anthem ahead of NBC’s first “Sunday Night Football” broadcast of the 2026 season, and the reaction on social media was immediate. Fans were sharply divided, with some praising the fresh sound and others saying the network should have left the song alone, Yahoo! reported.