Super Bowl XLIX was a game that came down to the wire, just like the NFL and NBC wanted. As a result, audiences stayed glued to the game until the very end, resulting in the biggest overnight rating in television history.
NBC Sports said that early data from Nielsen shows that the game scored a remarkable 49.7 overnight rating/72 share in metered markets. That’s a 4 percent increase over last year’s game, which featured a blowout between the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos. Last night, it took a last second miracle interception for the New England Patriots to beat the Seahawks 28-24.
It also passed the previous high mark, which was set by Super Bowl XLVII (between the Ravens and 49ers) in 2011, which had a 48.1 overnight rating.
NBC also boasted that the ratings continued to climb as the game went on. The last 15 minutes of the game earned a 52.9.
In addition, the Boston market had a 61.0 overnight rating, the highest ever for that market.
While Nielsen will report more detailed information later in the day, at the moment, Nielsen estimates that 112.2 million people watched the game. That would not only be the most-watched Super Bowl ever, but also the most-watched TV program in U.S. history.
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