Following a series of captivating divisional round matchups, the NFL season reached its climax with the Kansas City Chiefs securing their place in history as back-to-back Super Bowl champions, a feat last achieved by the New England Patriots in 2003–2004. The game garnered immense attention, particularly for the thrilling overtime period, where Patrick Mahomes sealed a dramatic Super Bowl LVIII victory with just 13 seconds remaining.
Even as Super Bowl LVIII has drawn to a close, its impact reverberates through ongoing discussions and analyses, particularly regarding its record-breaking viewership.
Did the Super Bowl LVIII beat the Moon landing viewership?
Super Bowl LVIII has made history as the most-watched television broadcast in a generation, CBS announced on Monday. The overtime thriller between the Chiefs and the 49ers averaged an impressive 123.4 million viewers. This viewership approached the numbers of the all-time most-watched television broadcast, the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing. The previous one attracted an estimated 125 to 150 million viewers, per CNN.
The NFL season, particularly the Chiefs’ games, has drawn significant attention from viewers. Taylor Swift’s fan base, known as Swifties, contributed to this surge in viewership, eagerly tuning in to watch their pop star’s boyfriend take the field.
Paramount Global’s chief executive, Bob Bakish, acknowledged Swift’s impact on NFL viewership in a recent Bloomberg interview, focusing on her role in widening the NFL’s audience.
“She is without a doubt incremental to audience on the NFL. She’s a great addition, widening the net of the NFL viewer even further.”
In addition to the Super Bowl, the Chiefs’ victory over the Bills in the divisional round set records as the highest-rated game in NFL divisional round history. Aired on CBS and streamed on Paramount+, the game surpassed 50 million viewers.
Even in the regular season, the Chiefs continued to draw massive viewership. Their game against the New York Jets on NBC averaged approximately 27 million viewers, making it the most-watched Sunday show since Super Bowl LVII earlier in the year.
Super Bowl LVIII sets new records in American history
The highly anticipated Super Bowl showdown in Las Vegas lived up to its hype and more, surpassing the previous record for the most-watched Super Bowl in history by an impressive 10%. An astounding nearly 200 million people tuned in to witness the entire game, marking the highest total audience in American history and showcasing a remarkable 10% increase from last year’s Super Bowl viewership.
The game’s broadcast was a collaborative effort, televised by CBS, Nickelodeon, and Univision, providing a diverse viewing experience. Paramount+ and the NFL’s digital platforms also streamed the game, contributing to the expansive viewership.
The game drew an impressive 120 million viewers, with CBS as the primary broadcaster. This impressive number of viewers surpassed the network’s previous record of 112.34 million, which was achieved during the 2016 Super Bowl game between the Denver Broncos and the Carolina Panthers.
Sunday’s game had a significance that went beyond just the viewership numbers. The game going into overtime was a rare occurrence, happening only for the second time in the history of the 58 Super Bowls.
This Super Bowl will go down in history as the longest ever played, making it a truly remarkable contest. Not only did the Chiefs stage an epic comeback, but it also became the most-watched program in television history.
