Against several predictions, the Super Bowl LIX held last Sunday, which ended with a 40-22 rout of the Philadelphia Eagles over the Kansas City Chiefs, became the most-watched event in the history of U.S. television, gathering an average audience of 127.7 million viewers on FOX, Fox Deportes, Telemundo, and the Tubi platform.
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The media fatigue seemingly generated by the Chiefs and their figures; the drop in online interactions; the slump in ticket resale, and a game that was decided by the end of the first half, led experts to project a rating lower than last year’s record, but finally the game in New Orleans surpassed by 4 million viewers the Kansas City victory over San Francisco in Las Vegas.
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The only event that could rival this year’s Super Bowl for the top spot in historical viewership in the United States is the arrival of man on the Moon in 1969, which is estimated to have gathered between 125 and 150 million people, although there are no official records.
The figures for Super Bowl LIX are generated by Nielsen Media and were delivered on Tuesday afternoon by Fox Sports.
“Why was the audience for Super Bowl LIX larger than last year?”
Part of the increase in the audience can be attributed to a change in the way viewers are counted. This is the first year that Nielsen measures out-of-home (OOH) viewers for all states except Hawaii and Alaska.
Previously, only the top 44 media markets were included, covering 65% of the country.
According to Fox Sports, the audience peaked at 137.7 million in the second quarter when surprisingly the Eagles began to build an insurmountable lead against the Chiefs.
Through streaming there was also another record, with a total of 14.5 million people on average who watched the Philadelphia team’s victory via Tubi, Telemundo, and the NFL platforms.
The Halfime Show featuring the controversial Kendrick Lamar marked another historic moment, with an audience of 133.5 million viewers between 8:30 and 8:45 pm (ET), a 3% increase compared to last year.
What were the main attractions of the Super Bowl?
This Super Bowl also featured the presence of the President of the United States Donald Trump and the singer Taylor Swift.
Trump was the first sitting president to attend a Super Bowl, while Swift’s romance with Chiefs tight end, Travis Kelce, continues to keep the pop superstar’s fans interested in the NFL.
It was the third consecutive year that the Super Bowl averaged more than 100 million viewers after a significant drop, which included 95.2 million for the 2021 Super Bowl where Tom Brady’s Buccaneers defeated Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs during the pandemic, which was the lowest average since 2007, likely due to the few parties and gatherings to watch the event.
What is the Top 10 of the 10 Most Watched Super Bowls in History?
This is also the Top 10 of the most-watched programs and events in the history of United States television with official data:
- 127.7 million: Super Bowl 2025 between Philadelphia Eagles vs Kansas City Chiefs, by FOX, Fox Deportes, Telemundo and Tubi.
- 123.7 million: Super Bowl 2024 between Kansas City Chiefs vs San Francisco 49ers, on CBS, Univision, Nickelodeon, Nick-at-Nite.
- 115 million: Super Bowl 2023 between the Kansas City Chiefs vs Philadelphia Eagles, on FOX and Fox Deportes.
- 114.8 million: Super Bowl of 2015, between New England Patriots vs Seattle Seahawks, on NBC and Universal.
- 112.7 million: Super Bowl 2014, between Seattle Seahawks vs Denver Broncos, on FOX and Fox Deportes.
- 112.3 million: Super Bowl 2016, between Denver Broncos vs Carolina Panthers, on CBS and ESPN Deportes.
- 111.9 million: Super Bowl 2017, between New England Patriots vs Atlanta Falcons, on FOX and Fox Deportes.
- 111.3 million: Super Bowl 2012, between New York Giants vs New England Patriots, on NBC.
- 111 million: Super Bowl 2011, between Green Bay Packers vs Pittsburgh Steelers, by FOX
- 108.6 million: Super Bowl 2012, between Baltimore Ravens vs San Francisco 49ers, on CBS.