Eagles QB Nick Foles won the MVP on Sunday as the Super Bowl’s audience fell 3 percent
Even the upstart Philadelphia Eagles’ dramatic 41-33 upset of the favored New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII on Sunday could not prevent another ratings disappointing for a league that’s audience continues to shrink.
The U.S. television viewership for Sunday’s game on Comcast Corp’s NBC dropped nearly 3 percent from last year, preliminary data by the Nielsen ratings agency showed on Monday.
About 47.4 percent of households in 56 major markets tuned in to watch the biggest offensive outpouring in Super Bowl history, which is down from 48.8 percent, according to the early Nielsen data. The broadcast currently ranks as the top show for the young calendar year.
The good news is that the overnight ratings ranked ninth among all Super Bowls ever, according to NBC. Justin Timberlake’s halftime performance (815pm-830pm) delivered a 48.1/70 overnight rating.
The Super Bowl traditionally ranks as the year´s most-watched event on U.S. television. Last year’s game, broadcast by Twenty-First Century Fox Inc. and which included the Patriots’ dramatic 25-point comeback in an overtime win over the Atlanta Falcons, drew 111.3 million viewers. Television ratings are being closely watched after the audience for National Football League games dropped almost 10 percent during the regular season.
Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady (No. 12) reacts to an incomplete pass during Super Bowl LII
Sunday’s Super Bowl was the lowest rated since Super Bowl XLIV in 2010, when the New Orleans Saints won their first Lombardi Trophy with a win over the Indianapolis Colts, according to Deadline.com.
NFL games remain among the most watched programming on television, but ratings took another significant dip during the 2017 regular season amidst controversial player protests and criticism over the league’s handling of concussions.
The average audience was 14.9 million viewers per game, down 9.7 percent from 16.5 million viewers in the 2016 regular season, according to Nielsen. The 2016 viewership was down eight percent from the previous year.
Beginning with now-former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in the 2016 NFL preseason, many players generated nationwide controversy peacefully protesting inequality and police violence against minorities by refusing to stand during the national anthem.
NBC personality Dan Patrick interviews Nick Foles (No. 9) of the Philadelphia Eagles as he is named Super Bowl MVP
The NFL has also faced negative press over the ongoing issue with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) – the long-term degenerative condition linked to head injuries that afflicted a number of deceased football stars. In August, a Boston University study diagnosed CTE in 110 out of 111 deceased former NFL players as part of the biggest ever case series on the disease.
Despite the drop in viewership, 20 of the 30 highest-rated shows and 37 of 50 on television in 2017 were pro football games, and both NBC and ESPN had the most-watched shows every week of the season in terms of total audience and in all key male demographics.
The NFL’s Red Zone cable channel, which takes viewers to different games whenever there is a scoring opportunity, drew an estimated 1 million weekly viewers.
However, some have suggested that NFL Red Zone may have hurt the league’s ratings overall by siphoning viewers away from the NFL’s network partners like CBS and Fox.
(Left) Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Alshon Jeffery celebrates with teammates after scoring a touchdown during the first quarter of Super Bowl LII. (Right), Foles catches a touchdown pass from tight end Trey Burton
NBC’s ‘NFL Sunday Night Football’ was the most-watched program in prime time, with 18.2 million viewers this past season. That figure is down from 20.3 million viewers in 2016 and 22.5 million in 2015.
NBC, CBS, Fox and ESPN pay more than $1 billion a year apiece for NFL TV rights, with ESPN spending the most – $1.9 billion for ‘Monday Night Football.’
Changing viewing habits are frequently cited as a reason for the falling ratings. Others have pointed to a string of injuries to high-profile players such as Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and the anemic performances of large-market teams such as the New York Giants, who finished the year with a 3-13 record.
Some, such as Fox CEO James Murdoch and CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus have publicly pointed to the proliferation of games, many of which failed to be competitive.
Of course, President Donald Trump has continued to point to the ongoing peaceful player protests as an explanation for the league’s diminished ratings.
Brady takes the field before the NFL Super Bowl LII in Minneapolis on Sunday