Carrie Underwood Returning to Sunday Night Football for 13th Season—but With a Reimagined Sound and Look

With September right around the corner, NFL fans have already started to prepare for another season. While looking over the teams, players, and their fantasy leagues, the first game of the season will kick off on September 4th with the Philadelphia Eagles facing off against the Dallas Cowboys. Although the NFL made some slight changes to the rules for the 2025 season, one aspect stayed the same – Carrie Underwood. Having helmed the Sunday Night Football anthem for over a decade, the singer will return for her 13th season.

Sharing the exciting news on her Instagram page, the post featured a stunning picture of Underwood. It also included just how long she helmed the anthem. Over the years, singers like Pink and Faith Hill held the honor. For Hill, she performed the song for six years before making the decision to leave. And while Underwood once turned down NBC when asked, the second time, she jumped at the chance.

Creative director Tripp Dixon shared details of the revamped anthem. “For the 20th season of SNF, we wanted to set the tone for the night by reimagining the anthem sound in a way that plays to Carrie’s powerhouse vocals, while visually creating a seamless blend of stylized shots and behind-the-scenes moments evoking the national roadshow that is Sunday Night Football, week after week in the fall,” he said.

Already pumped for a new season of hard hits, memorable moments, and iconic catches, fans also showed their love for Underwood. “Greatest theme song in sports continue!” One person even joked, “I have flashbacks of hearing this song & thinking ‘uh, do I have homework due on Monday?’”

How Carrie Underwood Approached Each New NFL Season

Having left her mark on the NFL over the last decade, Underwood knew exactly what it took to get fans excited for Sunday Night Football. NBC Sports creative director Tripp Dixon discussed how the country star approached each season. “For us, it’s a great collaboration every season, and the fact that she pushes us to go, ‘Hey, what are we doing differently?’ I think it just makes it unique and fun and exciting every season. There’s never that, ‘Oh, we’re gonna run it back.’ It’s not that. We toss the playbook out and go, ‘Ok, how are we doing this?’”

Much like Underwood, Dixon understood just how important the anthem was. “It’s really a signature introduction. So, it’s really designed to set the tone for the three-hour telecast. To me, it’s like the cover of a great book, or a curtains rising moment.”

As for the approach Underwood will take for the 2025 season, fans will have to tune in on September 7th to find out.