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Super Bowl 2025: By the Numbers
Michael Beach
February 09, 2025
Welcome to the latest edition of State of the Screens.
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Onward,
Michael Beach
Reminder: A few spots remain for my upcoming speaking tour.
1. Super Bowl 2025: By the Numbers
Four big questions re: Super Bowl TV:
1) How many people watch the Super Bowl?
2) What share of Super Bowl viewership comes from streaming?
3) How much does running an ad during the Super Bowl cost?
4) Which categories spend the most on Super Bowl ads?
Big question #1: How many people watch the Super Bowl?
Total viewership for the past 10 Super Bowls (YoY growth) according to Sports Media Watch:
1) 2015 - NE-SEA (NBC) - 115.8M (↑ 2%)
2) 2016 - DEN-CAR (CBS) - 113.7M (↓ 2%)
3) 2017 - NE-ATL (FOX) - 113.7M (↑ 0%)
4) 2018 - PHI-NE (NBC) - 118.0M (↑ 4%)
5) 2019 - NE-LAR (CBS) - 113.3M (↓ 4%)
6) 2020 - KC-SF (FOX) - 117.6M (↑ 4%)
7) 2021 - TB-KC (CBS) - 98.0M (↓ 17%)
8) 2022 - LAR-CIN (NBC) - 112.3M (↑ 15%)
9) 2023 - KC-PHI (FOX) - 115.1M (↑ 3%)
10) 2024 - KC-SF (CBS) - 123.7M (↑ 7%)
Video: NFL Media Chief Brian Rolapp on Shift to Streaming Services, International Games, and Social Media
Interesting: The 18-24 demo was up 22% YoY.
Big question #2: What share of Super Bowl viewership comes from streaming?
Streaming viewership by year (YoY growth):
1) 2014 - 531K (↑ 5%)
2) 2015 - 973K (↑ 83%)
3) 2016 - 1.4M (↑ 44%)
4) 2017 - 1.7M (↑ 21%)
5) 2018 - 2.0M (↑ 19%)
6) 2019 - 2.6M (↑ 29%)
7) 2020 - 3.4M (↑ 31%)
8) 2021 - 5.7M (↑ 68%)
9) 2022 - 6.0M (↑ 5%)
10) 2023 - 7.0M (↑ 17%)
11) 2024 - 8.5M (↑ 21%)
Streaming share of total viewership by year:
1) 2014 - 0.5%
2) 2015 - 0.8%
3) 2016 - 1.2%
4) 2017 - 1.5%
5) 2018 - 1.7%
6) 2019 - 2.3%
7) 2020 - 2.9%
8) 2021 - 5.8%
9) 2022 - 5.3%
10) 2023 - 6.1%
11) 2024 - 6.9%
Mr. Screens’ Crystal Ball: The game will be available for the first time on a free ad-supported streaming (FAST) service. Viewers must still download an app (Tubi), but no credit card is required to stream the Super Bowl. Lowering friction should drive the viewership share for streaming as high as 10%.
Big question #3: How much does running an ad during the Super Bowl cost?
Estimated cost per 30s spot by year (YoY growth) according to Kagan:
1) 2016 - $4.9M (↑ 11%)
2) 2017 - $5.0M (↑ 2%)
3) 2018- $5.1M (↑ 1%)
4) 2019 - $5.1M (↑ 1%)
5) 2020 - $5.3M (↑ 4%)
6) 2021 - $5.5M (↑ 4%)
7) 2022 - $6.2M (↑ 13%)
8) 2023 - $7.0M (↑ 13%)
9) 2024 - $7.0M (↑ 0%)
10) 2025P - ≈ $8.0M (↑ 14%)
Quote from Anthony Crupi - Sports Media Reporter @ Sportico:
“Super Bowl Sunday is the only night of the year in which Americans willingly engage with advertising en masse, and if minute-by-minute audience data is anything to go by, more people pay attention to the commercial breaks than the game itself. As the spectacle has evolved over the last seven decades, the ads have taken on such an aura of fascination that even people who watch only one sporting event each year can rattle off how much it costs to buy an in-game unit.”
FYI: Fox is selling a small number of 15s spots on Tubi for $500K each.
Big question #4: Which categories spend the most on Super Bowl ads?
Top ad categories during the 2024 Super Bowl according to MediaRadar:
1) Movies - 9%
2) Cars - 7%
3) Restaurants - 7%
4) Telecom - 7%
5) Alcohol - 6%
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