Super Bowl ratings: One for the record books (again)

Super Bowl numbers break own record set last year while racial divide is a factor in halftime show 

[Editor’s Note: This was updated from an earlier post to add more rating information. Updated again Feb. 13 to add even more rating information.] 

It turns out “Chiefs fatigue” wasn’t a thing.

The game wasn’t much, but viewers poured into the entrances Sunday for Super Bowl LIX and set another viewership record. According to preliminary figures, the matchup between the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles drew a final tally of 127.7 million viewers for Fox and its related properties, up from the then-record 123.7 million between the Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII with a peak of 137.7 viewers in the second quarter. The numbers were tallied from cable, satellite, over-the-air, and streaming platforms including Fox-owned Tubi, which provided a free option, though you would have to sign up for an account. The game also aired in Spanish over Fox Deportes and Telemundo. 

The person who operates this site predicted 120.8 million viewers.

The Fox and Tubi combined household ratings averaged a 40.9 rating and 125.85 million viewers, down in the former and up in the latter from last year’s CBS telecast. Among demos, the Super Bowl drew a 37.9 rating and 50.8 million viewers in the adults 18-49 demo and a 42.1 rating and 51.9 million viewers in the adults 25-54 demo. Fox aired Wednesday night game show The Floor afterward; it averaged a series-high 13.9 million viewers and a 3.7 rating in adults 18-49. However, The Floor was the least-watched Super Bowl lead-out in history.

Tubi and other streaming options drew 14.5 million viewers, a new record for any event. Tubi drew 13.6 million of those views and streaming made up 49 percent of the viewing total, a huge indictment that the public is shifting to streaming. Of the 49 percent, Tubi accounted for nearly one-fifth of those watching. There is no doubt Tubi was the biggest winner, despite their godawful commercials promoting themselves during the game. Tubi showed the least lag compared to others but wasn’t in HDR (high dynamic range) despite being in 4K. 

The controversial halftime show featuring Kendrick Lamar drew a record 133.5 million viewers, up last year from Usher’s performance at the big game. According to Samba TV, however, there was a sharp racial divide among those who tuned in. While the Super Bowl skewed toward white households by five percent, 25 percent of Black viewers said they would most likely watch only the halftime show while the telecast under-indexed by six percent. Reaction to Lamar’s performance also fell mostly among racial lines – which isn’t surprising since America’s entertainment preferences often skew that way, in an issue this site examined in 2017 (you can read my Kendrick Lamar review here.)

In Canada, the Super Bowl actually lost viewership from last year, drawing only 8.5 million viewers for Bell Media properties compared to ten million, but saw a 95 percent increase for TSN’s streaming counterpart. 

Philadelphia’s WTXF led all markets with a 52.5 household rating; WDAF Kansas City came in second with a 51.0. Ratings for Chicago, which did not finish among the ten most-rated markets, were not available.

The Chiefs were heading into the game looking for their third consecutive title – something no team has done in the Super Bowl era. The Eagles – who lost to the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII, were out looking to avenge that defeat. The Eagles made life miserable for QB Patrick Mahomes, who was sacked six times and threw two interceptions as they trailed at halftime 34-0 en route to a 40-22 shellacking, cementing a blowout loss with the Eagles winning their second Super Bowl title in eight years as QB Jalen Hurts was named Super Bowl LIX MVP. The Chiefs’ Travis Kelce was clearly muted with only four catches for 29 yards. 

The night wasn’t any better for Kelce’s beau Taylor Swift, who attended the game with her entourage and was booed by a heavily pro-Eagles crowd, giving a side eye when she noticed as Fox only devoted a few seconds of airtime to her.  Donald Trump became the first sitting President to attend a Super Bowl but was also booed by fans and left during halftime. 

Up next in the Super Bowl rotation is NBC, which will carry the 60th edition of the big game from Santa Clara, Calif. on February 8, 2026.