Down-to-the-wire Super Bowl draws game's second-largest audience, Nielsen says

[February 15, 2023]   By Lisa Richwine
 
 LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -Sunday's Super Bowl attracted an average of 113 million viewers on U.S. television and digital platforms, the second-highest audience in the history of the National Football League's championship game, the Nielsen ratings agency said on Tuesday.

Football - NFL - Super Bowl LVII - Half-Time Show - State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona, United States - February 12, 2023 Rihanna performs during the halftime show REUTERS/Caitlin O'hara

This year's matchup featured injured quarterback Patrick Mahomes leading the Kansas City Chiefs to a come-from-behind 38-35 victory in the final seconds over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Nielsen's figure includes people who watched on the Fox or Fox Deportes TV networks or streamed the game on Fox digital properties or NFL+.

The Super Bowl draws the biggest audience on U.S. television each year. The most-watched Super Bowl took place in 2015, when an average of 114.8 million people watched the New England Patriots defeat the Seattle Seahawks.

Viewership rose roughly 11% from last year, when Nielsen reported an audience of 101 million people.

Fox said the audience increased during the halftime show starring pop and R&B superstar Rihanna, averaging 118 million people on TV and digital platforms.

(Reporting by Lisa Richwine and Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles;Editing by Rosalba O'Brien and Bill Berkrot)

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