Fox’s Super Bowl attracts record-high 127.7 million viewers

The Philadelphia Eagles’ easy win over the Kansas City Chiefs delivered a record TV audience for Sunday’s Super Bowl. The number rose 3.5% to 127.7 million, according to final numbers from the ratings company Nielsen. The tally includes Fox Corp.’s namesake network, its free Tubi streaming service, Telemundo and other outlets. Tubi alone delivered 13.6 million viewers, Fox said. Fox generated over $800 million in gross ad revenue for Super Bowl LIX, including sales on Fox and Tubi, the media company announced Wednesday. Watch all of the Super Bowl commercials here Super Bowl ad review The best and worst commercials from the Big Game Click here Last year, 123.4 million tuned in for the National Football League championship to see the Chiefs pull off a thrilling overtime victory against the San Francisco 49ers. In contrast, the Eagles’ 40-22 win in New Orleans didn’t make for as much excitement. The team took an early commanding lead and the Chiefs didn’t score until late in the third quarter when they were down 34-0. The Eagles’ strong defense, which sacked Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes six times and made two interceptions, helped pave the way for the franchise’s second Super Bowl win. Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was named the game’s most valuable player after throwing two touchdowns and scoring another himself. Rookie cornerback Cooper DeJean got an interception and ran it back for a touchdown on his 22nd birthday. A 50-yard touchdown pass from Mahomes during the fourth quarter came too late. The Chiefs were seeking their third Super Bowl win in a row, a feat yet to be achieved by a National Football League franchise. Viewers at home saw Super Bowl commercials that leveraged humor, celebrity appearances and nostalgia to promote products that ranged from AI glasses to mayonnaise. Some 30-second ads this year went for a record price of more than $8 million. Some fans experienced difficulties with Fox’s Tubi service, airing complaints on social media about freezing and glitches. However, Tubi had the shortest Super Bowl lag time of any streaming service with a 26-second delay, according to video technology platform Phenix Real Time Solutions Inc. This year’s game marked the first time a sitting president attended a Super Bowl. The halftime show by rapper Kendrick Lamar, turned into a continuation of his high-profile feud with fellow singer Drake. Celebrities like Taylor Swift, who is dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce; Serena Williams, Paul McCartney and Lady Gaga were also in attendance at the Caesars Superdome. Trump posted multiple videos on social media highlighting some stadium attendees booing Swift, who endorsed former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election. —Bloomberg News Subscribe to Ad Age Sign up now for the latest industry news and analysis Click here

Fox’s Super Bowl attracts record-high 127.7 million viewers

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