Ratings for primetime coverage of the Winter Olympics, dating back to 1960.
Primetime coverage of the 2006 Turin Olympics averaged a 12.2/19 rating and 20.2 million viewers on NBC, down 37% in ratings and viewership from the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics on NBC (19.2/31, 31.9 mil), and down 25% and 20%, respectively, from the 1998 Nagano Olympics on CBS (16.3/26, 25.1 mil).
The 2006 Olympics were also down a whopping 56% from the ’94 Lillehammer Olympics, which averaged a 27.8 rating in primetime — still the highest ever for the Winter Olympics in primetime.
Average primetime ratings for Winter Olympics since ’60
| Year | Site | Net | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1960
|
Squaw Valley | CBS |
25.7/38
|
| 1964 | Innsbruck | ABC |
14.9/26
|
| 1968 | Grenoble | ABC |
13.5/23
|
| 1972 | Sapporo | NBC |
17.2/28
|
| 1976 | Innsbruck | ABC |
21.7/34
|
| 1980 | Lake Placid | ABC |
23.8/37
|
| 1984 | Sarajevo | ABC |
18.4/28
|
| 1988 | Calgary | ABC |
19.3/30
|
| 1992 | Albertville | CBS |
18.7/29
|
| 1994 | Lillehammer | CBS |
27.8/42
|
| 1998 | Nagano | CBS |
16.3/26
|
| 2002 | Salt Lake City | NBC |
19.2/31
|
| 2006 | Turin | NBC |
12.2/19
|
Ratings for primetime Winter Olympics telecasts since ’98
*: Opening Ceremony; ^: Closing Ceremony
| Night | 2006 (NBC) | 2002 (NBC) | 1998 (CBS) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | Rating | Rating | |
|
1*
|
12.8/21
|
25.5/42
|
17.1/29
|
| 2 |
13.5/23
|
17.1/30
|
12.3/22
|
| 3 |
13.3/20
|
17.6/27
|
20.2/30
|
| 4 |
12.8/20
|
19.6/30
|
14.8/23
|
| 5 |
11.3/18
|
18.5/29
|
18.2/30
|
| 6 |
11.3/18
|
17.5/28
|
15.3/24
|
| 7 |
11.9/19
|
17.6/29
|
19.3/30
|
| 8 |
11.2/19
|
15.8/27
|
14.8/26
|
| 9 |
11.3/19
|
14.0/25
|
15.4/28
|
| 10 |
11.6/18
|
17.1/27
|
18.0/28
|
| 11 |
13.6/21
|
17.1/26
|
14.9/23
|
| 12 |
15.5/23
|
22.3/34
|
13.5/21
|
| 13 |
10.0/15
|
19.5/31
|
20.7/32
|
| 14 |
15.8/24
|
26.8/41
|
13.9/22
|
| 15 |
9.7/17
|
17.7/31
|
23.2/38
|
| 16 |
9.7/17
|
15.7/27
|
12.0/22
|
| 17^ |
8.9/13
|
22.3/33
|
12.0/18
|
