See Carrie Underwood’s ‘Sunday Night Football’ Evolution

Underwood will star in the Sunday Night Football show opening for the 11th consecutive year.

Lauren Jo Black

| Posted on

August 3, 2023

Carrie Underwood; Photos Courtesy Of Sunday Night Football

Carrie Underwood will make an exciting return to NBC’s Sunday Night Football during the upcoming 2023 season with a show opening that promises to be one of her best yet.

After making her debut in the SNF show-open in 2012, Underwood will return for her 11th consecutive season performing the show-opening this year.

All-New Performance Coming Soon

The 2023 season will debut a show opening that features an all-new performance video that also includes augmented reality highlights displayed across a halo scoreboard.

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Additionally, SNF and Underwood teased that fans will witness a “surprise new element” during the 2023 season, but kept further details about that surprise under wraps.

Debuting On September 10

Fans will have to wait until Sunday, Sept. 10 to see the debut of the Sunday Night Football show opening. The footage is set to premiere on NBC and Peacock, preceding the matchup between Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys as they face off against Daniel Jones and their NFC East rivals, the New York Giants.

This encounter between the Cowboys and the Giants represents a milestone as it is the fifth occasion that the teams have squared off in the NBC Sunday Night Football season opener, making it the highest number of such meetings in the series’ history.

Carrie Underwood; Photo by Denise Truscello

Underwood’s performance shots were captured at Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas, which is the home of her ongoing residency, REFLECTION.

“Once again, the incredible Sunday Night Football team came up with a fresh, exciting visual concept that really gave us a chance to play,” Underwood shared in a statement. “I loved shooting the show open again this year at our home away from home, The Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas, and can’t wait for another season of football!”

“We’re thrilled to work with Carrie to capture a new vision for this season’s show open. It sets the tone for the broadcast and pays tribute to the teams, star players and fans in a fun and dynamic way,” said Tripp Dixon, creative director of the SNF show open for each of the past 11 years.

An Unforgettable Journey

Throughout the past decade, Carrie Underwood’s Sunday Night Football opening has thrilled viewers of SNF, which has ranked as primetime television’s No. 1 program for an unprecedented 12 consecutive years.

The superstar took on the Sunday Night Football opening slot beginning in the 2013 season (country music icon Faith Hill previously starred in the show opening for six years). Since then, she’s performed “Waiting All Day For Sunday Night,” which is a reprised version of Joan Jett’s 1988 hit, “I Hate Myself For Loving You,” nearly every year with the exception of two years.

During the 2016-2017 season, Underwood mixed things up with a performance of “Oh, Sunday Night,” set to the tune of “Somethin’ Bad,” her duet with Miranda Lambert. The following season, Underwood performed an original song titled, “Game On.”

For the 2019-2020 season, the show opening returned to the classic “Waiting All Day For Sunday Night” with Underwood and special guest, Joan Jett.

“I have always been a huge fan of Joan’s, and I’m thrilled that she’s joining us for the Sunday Night Football open,” Underwood said in a statement at the time. “What better way to pay homage to the original SNF opening song than by getting to play with her on primetime’s biggest stage?”

As fans anticipate the 2023-2024 season of Sunday Night Football and the brand-new show opening featuring eight-time GRAMMY winner, Carrie Underwood, here’s a look back at Underwood through the years of Sunday Night Football.