Staging the greatest Super Bowl comeback ever, Tom Brady and the Patriots snaring of an astounding fifth championship scored a 48.8/72 in metered market ratings for Fox – the best ever for the network, which also premiered spin-off 24:Legacy after the overtime game.
Besides the 24 new records the 6:45 – 10:30 PM ET game set, that metered market result is basically even with last year when the Denver Broncos beat the Carolina Panthers 24-10 on CBS, with just a 0.4% dip – making it the third most successful Super Bowl ever.
That also means that yesterday’s stunning game at NRG Stadium in Houston was also down 2% in MM results from the Patriots’ last Super Bowl win in 2014 when the Massachusetts team were victorious in a nail-biting 28-24 over the Seattle Seahawks on NBC. At 49.7/72, that remains the all-time Super Bowl metered market high.
Last year’s Super Bowl 50 eventually had a final viewership score of 111.9 million – which made it the third most watched show in U.S. TV history after 2015’s 114.4 million and 2014’s 112.2 million, which aired on Fox.
Compared to that last time Fox had the NFL biggest battle back in 2014, 2017’s Super Bowl LI is up 2.5% from the Seahawks blowout 48-8 win over the Broncos in MM results. Starring Bruno Mars and the Red Hot Chili Peppers as the halftime show, Super Bowl XLVIII had record viewership at the time – until the 2015 game.
Starting at 11 PM ET, the post-game debut of 24: Legacy after Super Bowl LI drew a 10.7/56 metered market result, according to Nielsen – which looks to be the best any 24 episode has done ever. Against last year’s 10:54 PM ET start of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on CBS, Legacy dipped 4% in MM results.
However, direct comparisons are a little tricky year-to-year when it comes to that coveted post-Super Bowl spot. Rarely debuting a show for the first time, different nets also have picked different types of shows to benefit from the potentially huge audience it presents – and they often start at different times depending on how long the game went. The last drama to have the post-Super Bowl berth was The Blacklist in 2015 on NBC. Going to air at 10:38 PM ET, the ninth episode of the James Spader starring show’s second season pulled in a 13.4/24. That’s the best The Blacklist has ever done and Legacy was down 20% in MM numbers from that.
We’ll update with more Super Bowl numbers, how Lady Gaga’s halftime show did and 18-49 results for 24: Legacy later. While we wait, with the numbers from the Patriots win last night included, here’s a look at the Top 5 metered market Super Bowl results ever:
1) 2015: 49.7 – Super Bowl XLIX: New England Patriots vs. Seattle Seahawks (NBC)
2) 2016: 49.0 – Super Bowl 50: Denver Broncos vs. Carolina Panthers (CBS)
3) 2017: 48.8/72 – Super Bowl LI: New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons (FOX)
4) 2013: 48.1 – Super Bowl XLVII: Baltimore Ravens vs. San Francisco 49ers (CBS)
4) 2011: 47.9 – Super Bowl XLV: Green Bay Packers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (FOX)
