Carrie Underwood returns to sing NBC Sunday Night Football theme for 11th season featuring a new twist
Carrie Underwood will once again provide the show open for NBC’s Sunday Night Football, returning for her 11th consecutive season beginning September 10 on NBC and Peacock. The country superstar’s collaboration with the broadcast has become a signature element of the telecast, pairing a high-energy musical performance with cinematic visuals that introduce each week’s game.
This season’s show open features an updated rendition of the familiar anthem “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night,” presented as a concert-style performance interwoven with advanced augmented reality highlights projected across a striking halo-shaped scoreboard. The sequence blends live performance footage from The Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas—home to Underwood’s ongoing REFLECTION residency—with dynamic game-focused imagery designed to celebrate teams, star players and fans.
Underwood, the winner of American Idol’s fourth season, recorded the open at The Resorts World Theatre, where she has staged sold-out performances since launching her residency. In addition to the refreshed arrangement and AR visuals, the show open this year introduces a surprise element that adds a new layer of spectacle to the production.
“Once again, the incredible Sunday Night Football team came up with a fresh, exciting visual concept that really gave us a chance to play,” Carrie shared in a press 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!”
Tripp Dixon, who has served as the creative director for the SNF show open for the past 11 years, emphasized the collaborative effort behind the new sequence. “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,” he said, highlighting how the production aims to balance spectacle with sport.
The Sunday Night Football show open will premiere on Sunday, Sept. 10 on NBC and Peacock, leading into the matchup that sees Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys visiting Daniel Jones and the New York Giants. That game marks a series-high fifth occasion that the Cowboys and Giants have been featured in the NBC Sunday Night Football season opener, underscoring the enduring national interest in this NFC East rivalry.
Carrie’s Deluxe album out in September
Beyond her work on Sunday Night Football, Carrie Underwood continues to stay busy on multiple fronts. She was the first artist to perform at the new Resorts World Theatre and has maintained a robust presence there with REFLECTION: The Las Vegas Residency, which began with sold-out runs in December 2021 and throughout spring 2022, resumed in June, and will continue with additional dates in the fall. Her most recent studio album, Denim & Rhinestones, which she co-produced, remains available and reflects the blend of country roots and contemporary pop-country production that has defined her solo career.
Underwood recently completed THE DENIM & RHINESTONES TOUR, a 43-city U.S. arena run that showcased songs from the album alongside fan favorites from across her catalog. She also launched a dedicated SiriusXM channel, CARRIE’S COUNTRY, which went live on June 9 and offers listeners an ongoing stream of music and curated programming tied to her artistry.
Fans can look forward to an expanded edition of Denim & Rhinestones: a deluxe version featuring six new tracks that is scheduled for release on September 22. The deluxe album provides additional material for listeners who followed the original release and for those who discover her music through national platforms like Sunday Night Football and her live performances in Las Vegas and on tour.
Her continued role as the voice of the Sunday Night Football open reinforces the crossover appeal that has made Carrie Underwood a fixture in both country music and mainstream entertainment. The combination of her vocal presence, the show’s evolving visual design, and the integration of augmented reality elements aims to make the 11th season of this collaboration one of the most visually engaging openings yet.
