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Sara Fischer: Record 127.7M watched Super Bowl LIX
Fox’s broadcast of Super Bowl LIX on Sunday drew a whopping 127.7 million viewers, according to Nielsen figures, making it the most-viewed Super Bowl and U.S. telecast of all time.
Why it matters: The record numbers are especially impressive, given the Philadelphia Eagles’ blowout performance against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Yes, but: The game still had all of the quintessential moments needed to capture viewers’ attention.
- Donald Trump made history as the first president to ever attend a Super Bowl. Taylor Swift and dozens of other celebrities made big screen appearances. Kendrick Lamar’s buzzy halftime performance made headlines and featured a surprise cameo by Serena Williams.
By the numbers: Viewership for the game was up 3% from 123.4 million people who tuned in last year.
- The game peaked at 137.7 million viewers in the second quarter, per Nielsen.
- Lamar’s performance drew an average of 133.5 million viewers across television and digital platforms, setting a new record for the most-watched Super Bowl halftime performance in history,
Between the lines: The ratings included viewership across Fox’s broadcast network, Fox Deportes and Telemundo, as well the NFL’s digital networks (including NFL+) and Fox’s ad-supported streaming service, Tubi.
- An average audience of 1.87 million combined viewers watched the game in Spanish on Fox Deportes and Telemundo.
Zoom out: Fox said the game set a record for the largest Super Bowl streaming audience in history, delivering an average minute audience of 14.5 million viewers across Tubi, Telemundo, and NFL Digital properties.
- Fox was the first Super Bowl broadcaster ever to make its live broadcast feed of the game available to streamers for free. (Previous Super Bowl broadcasts were only available on paywalled streaming services, like Paramount+.)
The big picture: The Super Bowl is one of the rare live TV events that can still bring people together for a shared experience.
- That makes the Big Game an increasingly valuable place for advertisers to tap into the cultural zeitgeist.
- Fox reportedly sold some 30-second ads for up to $8 million, a new record.
Go deeper: Super Bowl LVIII most-watched telecast in U.S. history
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