Super Bowl draws 90.7 million viewers
Bowl ratings super
Feb 7, 2006
NEW YORK -- Super Bowl XL came up big for ABC, scoring an average of 90.7 million viewers -- not only the most-watched Super Bowl in 10 years but also the most-watched TV program since 1996.
The Pittsburgh Steelers' 21-10 victory over the Seattle Seahawks delivered a 41.6 household rating/62 share, according to data released Monday by Nielsen Media Research. That was up slightly from last year's 41.1/62 for the battle of two bigger-market teams, the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots.
Last year's Eagles-Patriots game drew 86.1 million viewers to Fox.
ABC's postgame programming, a special episode of "Grey's Anatomy," was able to hold on to more of its audience than Fox's shows last year. Nielsen said "Grey's" averaged 38.1 million viewers and a 34.6 rating from 10:30-11:30 p.m. EST.
That made "Grey's" the most-watched (and best-rated in adults 18-49) entertainment program after a Super Bowl since the premiere of "Survivor II" on CBS in 2001. It also attracted the most viewers of an entertainment program to broadcast TV since the finale of "Friends" in May 2004 and ABC's best in 12 years.
By comparison, Fox's post-Super Bowl programming didn't fare as well when it began at 10:45 p.m. "The Simpsons" averaged 23.1 million viewers and, a half-hour later, the premiere of "American Dad" kept only 15.1 million.
Among metered markets, it's not surprising that Pittsburgh and Seattle were standouts. Pittsburgh, which took home its first Super Bowl championship since 1980, averaged a 57.1/83. Seattle, whose team made its first Super Bowl appearance, averaged a 55/83.
The game was popular in the markets of last year's Super Bowl teams, Boston (40.1/59) and Philadelphia (48.8/67). It was slightly less popular in New York (37.0/53) and Los Angeles (34.2/61).
ABC capped the night with a special third-anniversary edition of "Jimmy Kimmel Live," which aired from about midnight to 1 a.m. ET. The telecast delivered the program's highest-ever ratings across the board, with an average of 7.4 million viewers and a 3.3 rating in the adults 18-49 demographic, according to preliminary Nielsen estimates. "Kimmel's" previous Nielsen records were set with the program's debut, which followed ABC's Super Bowl telecast in January 2003.
The Pittsburgh Steelers' 21-10 victory over the Seattle Seahawks delivered a 41.6 household rating/62 share, according to data released Monday by Nielsen Media Research. That was up slightly from last year's 41.1/62 for the battle of two bigger-market teams, the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots.
Last year's Eagles-Patriots game drew 86.1 million viewers to Fox.
ABC's postgame programming, a special episode of "Grey's Anatomy," was able to hold on to more of its audience than Fox's shows last year. Nielsen said "Grey's" averaged 38.1 million viewers and a 34.6 rating from 10:30-11:30 p.m. EST.
That made "Grey's" the most-watched (and best-rated in adults 18-49) entertainment program after a Super Bowl since the premiere of "Survivor II" on CBS in 2001. It also attracted the most viewers of an entertainment program to broadcast TV since the finale of "Friends" in May 2004 and ABC's best in 12 years.
By comparison, Fox's post-Super Bowl programming didn't fare as well when it began at 10:45 p.m. "The Simpsons" averaged 23.1 million viewers and, a half-hour later, the premiere of "American Dad" kept only 15.1 million.
Among metered markets, it's not surprising that Pittsburgh and Seattle were standouts. Pittsburgh, which took home its first Super Bowl championship since 1980, averaged a 57.1/83. Seattle, whose team made its first Super Bowl appearance, averaged a 55/83.
The game was popular in the markets of last year's Super Bowl teams, Boston (40.1/59) and Philadelphia (48.8/67). It was slightly less popular in New York (37.0/53) and Los Angeles (34.2/61).
ABC capped the night with a special third-anniversary edition of "Jimmy Kimmel Live," which aired from about midnight to 1 a.m. ET. The telecast delivered the program's highest-ever ratings across the board, with an average of 7.4 million viewers and a 3.3 rating in the adults 18-49 demographic, according to preliminary Nielsen estimates. "Kimmel's" previous Nielsen records were set with the program's debut, which followed ABC's Super Bowl telecast in January 2003.
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