All things considered, NFL Kickoff Game ratings held up as well as NBC could reasonably hope.
Thursday’s Texans-Chiefs NFL Kickoff Game averaged an 11.2 rating and 20.54 million viewers on NBC, down 13% in ratings and 7% in viewership from Packers-Bears last year (12.8, 22.03M) but flat and up 8% respectively from Falcons-Eagles in 2018 (11.2, 18.98M).
The final viewership total increased 6% over the Nielsen fast-nationals released Friday (19.3M). The rise can be attributed to out-of-home viewing, which Nielsen began including in its final nationals August 31.
The Chiefs’ comfortable win, which peaked with 22.0 million viewers in the fast-nationals, ranks as easily the most-watched television program since the Academy Awards in February (23.57M) and the top sports program since the Super Bowl (100.45M). There are typically any number of marquee sporting events between the Super Bowl and the Kickoff Game, but this year has been a noted exception.
Due to the upheaval in the sporting calendar this year, the Kickoff Game faced unusual competition from an NBA playoff game involving LeBron James and from the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It also faced a Serena Williams US Open semifinal, albeit for the third straight year (and fourth of the past five). Those events combined for 4.83 million viewers (2.50 for the NBA, 1.55 for tennis and 790,000 for the NHL).
Given the competition and the lopsided score — Kansas City led at one point 31-7 — the numbers are not exactly surprising.
Thursday’s game tied 2018 as the lowest rated Kickoff Game since 2008 (Washington-NYG: 8.6). It bears noting that low numbers for the NFL are the envy of any other sports league. The Kickoff Game posted a higher rating than 11 of the last 12 World Series games (last year’s Game 7 the lone exception) and each of the past ten NBA Finals games.
The Kickoff Game had an additional streaming audience of 970,000 across NBC, NFL and Verizon platforms, up 55% from last year (627K). Across TV and streaming, the game averaged 21.5 million viewers.
Kansas City led all markets Thursday night with a 47.8 rating and a whopping 71 share, meaning that 71 percent of all televisions in use were tuned to the game. Houston was a very distant second at a 20.6/39. Denver was the top neutral market at an 18.8/36, with Austin, Texas (17.2/34) and Indianapolis (16.8/32) rounding out the top five.
The Kickoff Game drew a 6.7 rating in adults 18-49 (-6%), a 5.3 in adults 18-34 (even) and an 8.7 in adults 25-54 (-7%).
NFL Kickoff Game ratings, all-time
[Nielsen estimates from NBC Sports, ShowBuzz Daily 9.14]
