NFL turns in best regular-season viewership since 1989
- - NFL turns in best regular-season viewership since 1989
Chris Cwik January 7, 2026 at 6:05 AM
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When it comes to popularity, the NFL is king. The sport draws more viewers than the other big four North American sports ... and that's unlikely to change any time soon.
This season the NFL posted its best regular-season average viewership numbers since 1989, per the Sports Business Journal. An average of 18.7 million viewers watched NFL games in 2025. That's the second-best figure on record since the metric started being tracked in 1988. Only the 1989 season, which averaged 19 million viewers, finished ahead of 2025.
The jump from 2024 to 2025 was significant. Average viewership rose from 17.5 million fans in 2024 to 18.7 million fans in 2025, a 7% jump. Those 2025 figures were helped by a new ratings measurement called Big Data + Panel. The measurement — which Nielson got approved in January of 2025 — combines data acquired from various cable providers and streaming services and combines it with Nielson's usual panel system — where the company uses a smaller group of individuals to represent a larger group of people.
NFL coverage was up across the board on every network and streaming service that carried games in 2025. CBS, NBC and Prime Video saw record-setting season averages, per SBJ. Fox had its best season since 2015 and ESPN has its second-best season ever, with 2023 being higher.
Despite the team's struggles, the Kansas City Chiefs were once again the most-watched team in the NFL. That shouldn't necessarily come as a surprise considering the Chiefs' game against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving set a regular-season record for the most-watched NFL game. Over 57 million viewers tuned in to watch the contest, which the Cowboys won 31-28.
Fans who watched the NFL in 2025 were treated to an unusual season, in which elite quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson all failed to make the playoffs. Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills were the one exception to that list.
With all those quarterbacks faltering, the year was defined by young players stepping into the spotlight. New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye became an MVP candidate, Chicago Bears second-year passer Caleb Williams led a number of late-game drives to push his team forward, Bo Nix came up big to lead the Denver Broncos to the top seed in the AFC and Trevor Lawrence blossomed under new Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen.
With the regular season in the books, it's now up to the playoffs to try and set new viewership records. The NFL could have a chance at that in the wild-card round, as it features some excellent matchups, including a heated rivalry game between the Bears and Green Bay Packers.
Source: “AOL Sports”
