NFL Ratings Surge with Streaming as Traditional TV Numbers Decline

This week, football fans are in for a treat as CBS and Fox go head-to-head with Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts taking center stage in a rare late-season double-double. Despite all the distractions of an election year and the decline in TV viewership, the NFL is on track to have its best ratings season since 2015. It may seem surprising, but the league’s viewership is up by 2%, averaging 18.1 million viewers per game, which is the highest in nine years.

Primetime viewership, on the other hand, has seen a decline. Monday Night Football on Disney is down by 7%, with an average of 14.7 million viewers per game compared to last season. This drop can be partly attributed to fewer standalone games being broadcast on ABC. However, the NFL has seen gains in streaming viewership, with Sunday Night Football on NBC averaging 19.3 million viewers on TV but increasing to 21.6 million when digital platforms like Peacock are included.

Streaming has become a game-changer for the NFL, with Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime Video now averaging 13.6 million viewers per week, a 9% increase from last year. Despite the shift in how viewers consume content, the NFL has managed to adapt and thrive in the changing media landscape. With digital audiences on the rise, the NFL has found a way to stay relevant and engage fans across all platforms.