How Many People Watch the Super Bowl? Statistics and Ratings History

Super Bowl LVIII will take place on February 11 and, as part of the annual traditions surrounding the Big Game, there will be ratings talk. How many people watch the Super Bowl every year is an object of fascination for not only the sports media-crazed like us here at The Big Lead. It has become a cultural phenomenon. Everyone you know tunes in, no matter what their interest level is. Which isn't a recent development by any means, yet is still remarkable in this age of cord-cutting where everybody seems to be watching something different on their preferred streaming services. Perhaps that is why the last few Super Bowls have been a bit down in terms of ratings relative to the middle of the 2010s.

But make no mistake, the Super Bowl is the crown jewel of television viewership. Every year it is the most-watched program in the country. When you look at lists of the most viewed television events in history, most of the entries are Super Bowls. The last few years' worth of numbers suggest nearly a third of the American population tunes into the Big Game every year, whether it's at their own home, a friend's, or a restaurant/bar situation.

How Many People Watch the Super Bowl?

We have established that a whole lot of eyeballs will be on the screen come February 11. But just how many? Last year's Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles drew 115 million viewers, the largest number since the epic New England Patriots-Seattle Seahawks slugfest in 2014, which was previously the highest-rated Super Bowl on record.

Viewership is not linear. It doesn't grow year-over-year on its own. But there is a chance that this year's viewership will be even greater than last year as Nielsen nails down how to account for out-of-home viewing. They started adding that into the sum total in 2021 and had to issue a revised ratings number in May last year for Chiefs-Eagles due to miscalculations in that realm.

We're going to make an official prediction that this year's contest will fall slightly below last year and clock in at 112 million viewers. Still an absurd, borderline unbelievable number, but not record-setting.

Super Bowl Ratings History

If the above paragraphs piqued your curiosity, here's the full history of Super Bowl viewership, from Super Bowl 1 back in 1967 to Super Bowl LVI, or the Super Bowl preceding the record-setting 115 million viewership mark mentioned above.

And there you have it. A complete data set for all Super Bowl viewership numbers. Enjoy the game-- and the ratings talk.