NFL's Ratings Unaffected By Election Season, So Far
Historically, the viewership for NFL games declines during election years. The political news week begins on Sunday, the day most NFL games are played. By 10 am ET, the news cycle is already flooded with New York Times op-eds and soundbites from "Meet the Press." Even in America, football takes a backseat to the future of the nation.
Yet, early signs suggest that the NFL will hold up better this season than in past presidential election cycles.
NBC started off the season with the Chiefs' last-second win over the Ravens – the "Toe Game," if you will – and saw its highest-rated kickoff game on record with 8.9 million, surpassing the 27.6 million, up 5 percent year-over-year.
Through two weeks, NBC's flagship Sunday Night Football (which also streams live on Peacock) package is averaging 24.1 million viewers, the highest since 2015.
CBS has an even better story to tell.
CBS is off to its best two-week start to an NFL season since 1998-1999, averaging 19.86 million viewers. On Sunday, the Chiefs' walk-off win (thanks to Harrison Butker) against the Bengals delivered the most-watched NFL game on CBS since 1998, with nearly 28 million viewers.
Fox is off to its best start since 2020, with an 18.68 million average. That average could push past 20 million viewers this weekend when the network airs Ravens at Cowboys at 4:25 pm.
Tom Brady, Fox's new lead color commentator, just keeps on winning.
Kamala Harris, Patrick Mahomes, Donald Trump. (Getty Images)
On average, ESPN's Monday Night Football is hit the hardest during election years. Monday night games compete directly with primetime cable news. Hosts like Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, and Rachel Maddow will outdraw almost every non-football program on cable this fall.
Still, Monday Night Football has so far avoided the traditional election year woes. Falcons-Eagles on Monday drew an audience of 15,038,000 viewers, ESPN’s third-best Monday Night Football viewership for an ESPN/ESPN2 game – which was not simulcast on ABC – since the 2019-20 season (50+ games).
It's worth noting that Monday Night Football had become a weak package during the last two election cycles. The NFL often handed ESPN the fourth or fifth-best game of the week. However, new ESPN leadership has impressively mended the fences with the league and now has a yearly slate on par with its competitors.
Monday Night Football is important again – and it feels like it. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman are the best broadcast duo in the sport, as ESPN's NFL production. ESPN will carry NFL doubleheaders with ABC over the next two weeks.
Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime did dip 1 percent last week during its season premiere with 14.96 million viewers. Although, one could argue such a minimal year-over-year decline constitutes a win.
The game was over at halftime. The Bills defeated the Dolphins, 31-10. By comparison, last year's Week 2 matchup of Eagles-Vikings averaged 15.06 million and came down to the final play.
Like Tom Brady, Amazon just keeps winning.
There are two main takeaways from the NFL ratings so far:
One, Americans really love the NFL. They are obsessed. While most entertainment products are on the decline, the NFL is somehow still growing.
Two, viewers are not quite as interested in this election as the past two. At least not yet. Are their minds already made up? Is Trump fatigue real? Are Americans tired of the partisan hysteria?
Yes.
Now, the NFL ratings will dip some as the election approaches. But even if the league doesn't match last year's record-breaking season, smart money is on less of a decline than during the presidential elections in 2016 (down 8 percent) and 2020 (down 7 percent).
Granted, any league-wide political statement could swiftly derail the NFL's momentum. That is likely to happen in the NBA in October. LeBron James, Steph Curry, and other NBA players have already endorsed Kamala Harris. Luckily for the NFL, Patrick Mahomes is the face of its league.
Despite pressure to do so, Mahomes has repeatedly declined to endorse a candidate.
"I don’t want to pressure anyone to vote for a certain president," Mahomes told Time last April. "I want people to use their voice, whoever they believe in. I want them to do the research."
"I think my place is to inform people to get registered to vote, to inform people to do their own research and then make their best decision for them and their family," he told reporters at a news conference last Wednesday.
Mahomes understands that Republicans buy sneakers, too.
And they watch a lot of football.