Four Kansas City Chiefs games were among the 11 most-watched TV broadcasts in 2021
Part of this can be chalked up to the Kansas City Chiefs’ success, but some of it is likely because of quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ fame.
Whatever the reason, four of the Chiefs’ games from 2021 were among the top 11 most-watched U.S. television broadcasts from the year.
No. 1 on the list is probably easy to guess — it’s Super Bowl LV. Nearly 92 million people tuned in and saw the Buccaneers defeat the Chiefs 31-9.
The Chiefs’ 38-24 win over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship Game is third on the list, and KC’s 22-17 victory against the Cleveland Browns in an AFC Divisional Game ranked sixth.
The only game among the top 12 that wasn’t a postseason contest or played on a holiday was the Chiefs’ 19-9 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Nov. 21.
No other team had four games among the top dozen most-watched. Here is the list from Sportico, which compiled the numbers.
If you ever doubted that football is king in the United States, a look at the top 100 broadcasts shows 82 were football games, including 75 involving NFL teams.
Other sporting broadcasts on the top 100: the Olympics (10) and college basketball (two).
Only one Wild Card Game cracked the top 12: the Saints’ 21-9 victory over the Chicago Bears, and that likely was powered by being aired on Nickelodeon as well as CBS.
This story was originally published January 7, 2022 at 10:57 AM.
