A custom survey from Nielsen and the NFL found that over 208 million people watched Super Bowl LVI on Feb. 13.
The Super Bowl is one of the most-watched sporting events on the planet each year. It has become an American tradition and an unofficial American holiday as friends, families, and co-workers gather to watch. Be it for the game itself, the expensive commercials, or the halftime show, it is true blue sports happening.
Following the game, Neilsen announced that the matchup between the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnatti Bengals pulled in over 112 million viewers on average for the broadcast that kick off at 6:30 PM ET. The fifth most in Super Bowl history. However, that number isn’t an exact approximation of how many people actually watched. Just how many average television screens were tuned in throughout the hours-long broadcast.
Over 208 million tuned into Super Bowl LVI on Feb. 13
Along with residential televisions, Nielsen also measures at bars and restaurants across 65% of the country. And the company’s co-viewing measurement covers groups of up to 16 people in households.
To get an even better idea of the true amount among the millions of gatherings that occurred for the game, NORC at the University of Chicago — on behalf of the league and Nielsen — surveyed 6,600 people. Through that survey, it was discovered that over 208 million people actually tuned in to the broadcast in total.
“While it’s no secret that the Super Bowl is the biggest event across the media landscape on a yearly basis, the exact number of people watching the game has been challenging to pinpoint given the fact that people tend to gather in groups to watch the game,” Paul Ballew, Chief Data and Analytics Officer of the NFL said in a statement. “We’re grateful for the work put into this custom survey by Nielsen, the results of which we feel provide the most accurate picture to date of the total viewership for this unique event.”
In their traditional research, Nielsen also found that almost 90% of people watching TV at the time of the game, were watching Super Bowl LVI. That is the highest share of a viewing audience on record.