|
Chalk one up for Fox and the NFL.
The record-setting 2010 NFL season concluded with another television milestone as Super Bowl XLV on FOX reached a total audience of 162.9 million viewers, making it the most-watched show in U.S. television history according to The Nielsen Company.
The Packers-Steelers championship game topped by 9.5 million the previous record of 153.4 million total viewers set last year (Colts-Saints in Super Bowl XLIV) and marks the fourth consecutive record-setting total audience for the Super Bowl. Super Bowls account for the 20 most-watched programs in history in terms of total audience.
Most-Watched TV Programs, Total Viewers
|
Game
|
Total Viewers
|
|
Super Bowl XLV (Packers-Steelers), 2/6/11
|
162.9 million
|
|
Super Bowl XLIV (Colts-Saints), 2/7/10
|
153.4 million
|
|
Super Bowl XLIII (Cardinals-Steelers), 2/1/09
|
151.6 million
|
|
Super Bowl XLII (Giants-Patriots), 2/3/08
|
148.3 million
|
|
Super Bowl XXXVIII (Patriots-Panthers), 2/1/04
|
144.4 million
|
Source: NFL, The Nielsen Company
In addition, a record average of 111 million viewers watched Super Bowl XLV – topping the previous mark of 106.5 million for Super Bowl XLIV.
Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, and is a contributor to Forbes SportsMoney blog.. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).
Follow Maury Brown on Twitter 
Follow The Biz of Football on Twitter
Follow the Business of Sports Network on Facebook
 |