Milan Cortina Olympics Viewership Surges

The Milan Cortina Olympics recorded an average of 23.5 million viewers in the United States, positioning them as the most-watched Winter Games since 2014. This audience represents a 96% increase compared to the Beijing Games four years prior.

NBCUniversal reported that this average encompasses combined audiences from NBC, Peacock, CNBC, USA Network, and various other digital platforms. The viewership data covered both live afternoon (2-5 p.m. EST) and prime-time (8-11 p.m. EST/PST) broadcast windows.

Data Sources and Other Events

These viewership figures are derived from Nielsen’s Big Data + Panel ratings (up to February 19), Nielsen’s preliminary data for the final three days (February 20-22), and digital analytics from Adobe Analytics.

Separately, the United States' 2-1 overtime victory against Canada in men's hockey on Sunday morning had its U.S. viewership numbers pending. However, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported that 8.7 million viewers in Canada watched the game when Jack Hughes scored the winning goal in overtime.

Executive Insights and Broadcasting Milestones

Molly Solomon, executive producer for NBC’s Olympics coverage, indicated that the Winter Olympics exceeded expectations, citing compelling settings, athlete access, and advanced technology (such as first-person view drones and enhanced audio) that immersed the audience in the stories.

She also highlighted Team USA's performance as the best in an overseas Olympics, contributing to audience engagement.

NBC achieved a broadcasting milestone in February by airing the Super Bowl, the Olympics, and the NBA All-Star Game within the same month, a first for any network. It also launched "Sunday Night Basketball" on February 1.

According to Nielsen, a total of 215.6 million U.S. viewers tuned into at least one of these events. Audience reach figures have shown an increase under Nielsen’s updated rating system, which reduced the minimum viewing requirement from 5 to 3 minutes.

Super Bowl 60 attracted an average of 125.6 million viewers across NBC, Peacock, and Telemundo, making it the second-most-watched program in U.S. history. The NBA All-Star Game achieved its highest audience in 15 years, averaging 8.8 million viewers, while the Lakers-Knicks game on February 1 averaged 4.5 million viewers.

NBC Sports President Rick Cordella expressed satisfaction with the overall outcomes, crediting the success to thorough planning and execution throughout the month.