Another ratings record for the National Football League and yes, it’s for Conference Championship Sunday. Amazing stuff. This dates back to 1982 when the games involving San Diego-Cincinnati and Dallas-San Francisco averaged over 60 million viewers. The average for Sunday totaled 53.4 million people. Very impressive.
Here’s the NFL’s press release.
MOST-WATCHED CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP SUNDAY IN 29 YEARS
JETS-STEELERS MOST-WATCHED AFC CHAMPIONSHIP EVER
AVERAGE OF 53.4 MILLION VIEWERS WATCHED EACH GAME
Football fans across America continue to tune in to NFL games, resulting in the most-watched conference championship Sunday in 29 years. An average of 53.4 million viewers watched NFL games last weekend, the most for an NFL conference championship Sunday since January 1982 (game-by-game comparison below).
The New York Jets-Pittsburgh Steelers AFC Championship Game on CBS drew 54.8 million viewers ranking as the most watched AFC championship ever.
The Green Bay Packers-Chicago Bears matchup on FOX drew 51.9 million viewers to rank as the third NFC Championship Game in four years to average more than 50 million viewers.
2010 NFL Conference Championship Games
Date Network (Game) Viewers Jan. 23, 2011 FOX (Packers at Bears) 51.9 million Jan. 23, 2011 CBS (Jets at Steelers) 54.8 million CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND AVERAGE 53.4 million 1981 NFL Conference Championship Games
Date Network (Game) Viewers Jan. 10, 1982 NBC (Chargers at Bengals) 51.6 million Jan. 10, 1982 CBS (Cowboys at 49ers) 68.7 million CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND AVERAGE 60.2 million
Source: NFL & The Nielsen Company
And that will do it.
