Super Bowl XLIV Breaks Ratings Records

NEW YORK: Super Bowl XLIV on CBS on Sunday night scored 106.5 million viewers in the U.S., becoming the most-watched program of all time and delivering a major ratings boost to Undercover Boss, the new show from ALL3MEDIA’s Studio Lambert.

Nielsen reports that Sunday night’s football game between the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts was viewed in 51.7 million households, topping M*A*S*H‘s record of 50.2 million homes and 106 million viewers. The game scored a 45 percent U.S. household rating.

“The Super Bowl remains the premier television event of the year, and is one of the few programs in an era of fragmented TV viewership that can still attract a huge national audience,” said Dave Thomas, the president of media client services at Nielsen. “This year’s Super Bowl had a compelling narrative, with the underdog New Orleans Saints coming from behind against powerhouse Indianapolis Colts. There was tremendous interest in both the game and the advertisements leading up to last night and the excitement of the game itself translated into record ratings.”

The second most-viewed Super Bowl was last year’s, with 98.7 million viewers, followed by the 2008 edition with 97.4 million viewers. Before that, the biggest audience was seen in 1996. 

Broadcast after the Super Bowl, Undercover Boss, produced by Studio Lambert, scored 38.6 million viewers. This is the largest audience ever for the premiere of a reality series in the U.S., according to ALL3MEDIA. CBS has ordered 10 episodes of the show, which will air regularly at 9 p.m. on Sunday nights. The show is based on the Channel 4 series of the same name. The British broadcaster is on board for a new season of six episodes, and has acquired the U.S. version, which has also sold to Canada (CTV), Australia (Network 10), Sweden (SVT), Norway (TV Norge) and Denmark (TV2). The Channel 4 version, meanwhile, has been licensed by ALL3MEDIA International to Australia, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Holland and New Zealand. Format deals have been concluded in Spain (BocaBoca is producing for Antenna 3) and Denmark (Nordisk for DR), with options placed in Germany, Australia, France, Sweden and Belgium.

“I’m delighted that American viewers have connected so strongly with Undercover Boss,” said Stephen Lambert. “CBS gave the show an extraordinary launch by placing it in the post Super Bowl slot, but the way the people are talking about the show means that I’m hopeful that many of those viewers will be coming back next week when the show starts running in its regular slot. Given what has been happening to the American economy, and indeed the world’s economy, this is a show that resonates with people.”