Carrie Underwood isn’t giving up her Sunday night job just yet.
NBC announced this week that the country superstar will return as the voice of the “Sunday Night Football” opening for a remarkable 14th consecutive season, once again performing “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night.”
The new opener will debut Sept. 13 ahead of the Dallas Cowboys’ matchup against the New York Giants.
For football fans who have spent more than a decade associating Underwood’s voice with the final NFL game of the weekend, the announcement means one of NBC’s most familiar traditions will continue for another year.
Plenty of fans were thrilled.
“YAYYY!!! Now when will she perform the halftime show!?!? She deserves it and would have the BEST show!” one Instagram user wrote.
Another had an even more specific suggestion.
“Well done! Make her the Superbowl halftime show. Add some class and respect after last year’s blunder,” the commenter wrote.
“One of my Favorite parts of SNF!!!” another fan added.
Underwood taking the stage during a Super Bowl halftime show would certainly represent a promotion from introducing NBC’s weekly Sunday night game, but that wasn’t the only personnel suggestion floating around following the announcement.
Some country fans already have her potential successor picked out.
Ella Langley, the rising country singer behind “Choosin’ Texas,” received multiple endorsements from commenters who apparently believe 14 seasons is enough for Underwood.
“Can We get a @ellalangleymusic Sunday Night Football Anthem. Just a thought,” one person wrote.
“Time to pass it on. Let Ella sing it,” another added.
A third simply declared, “Its time for a change. We need more diverse lineup.”
NBC evidently isn’t ready for that particular changing of the guard.
Underwood took over the “Sunday Night Football” opening in 2013 following Faith Hill’s departure. What could have been a relatively brief television gig instead turned into a 14-season relationship between one of country’s biggest stars and one of television’s biggest weekly sporting events.
At this point, an entire generation of younger NFL fans has barely known Sunday Night Football without her.
NBC isn’t merely recycling last year’s opening, either.
The network says the 2026 version will receive a production refresh with a stronger rock influence. Scenes were filmed inside a recording studio, a smaller music venue and a packed stadium, creating what Underwood has described as a “rock star fever dream.”
That should give NBC plenty of spectacle before everyone settles down to argue about holding penalties, questionable fourth-down decisions and whether the officials have secretly conspired against their favorite team.
The debate over Langley is understandable. Television sports traditions eventually change, and NBC has changed singers before. Pink performed the opening during the first season of NBC’s current Sunday Night Football era before Faith Hill took over in 2007. Hill remained through the 2012 season, and Underwood arrived the following year.
Underwood has now lasted substantially longer in the role than either predecessor.
