The year big events came back
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Major live TV events saw a notable ratings uptick this year, underscoring how much audiences are craving communal, real-time experiences as their day-to-day viewing habits become more fragmented.
Why it matters: The pandemic shift to streaming drove historic low TV ratings for live events that have mostly started to rebound, but only a few have managed to set new records.
By the numbers: Fox's Super Bowl LIX broadcast in February drew a whopping 127.7 million viewers, according to Nielsen, making it the most-watched Super Bowl and U.S. telecast of all time.
- NBC's airing of the 99th annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade reached 34.3 million viewers across NBC and Peacock, its biggest combined audience on record.
- Nearly 45 million people watched the three Thanksgiving Day NFL games on average this year, per Nielsen, shattering last year's record of 34.5 million viewers.
Between the lines: Ratings for award shows and other major sporting events have seen strong growth compared to previous years, but many remain well below their former highs.
- Ratings for the Oscars, Emmys, Golden Globes and Tonys all saw notable upticks this year. But no award show has been able to come close to the viewership highs from the 2010s.
- More than 27 million people in the U.S. tuned into the final game of the MLB World Series on Fox in November, boosting the overall ratings across the seven-game series to more than 16 million U.S. viewers — its largest audience since 2016.
The big picture: After years of splintering media habits and content overload, people are not only tuning into moments that bring them together but also showing up in person.
- The U.S. Open set an all-time attendance record this year of more than 1.1 million fans over three weeks. MLB attendance exceeded 71 million, an increase for the third consecutive season. WNBA had a single-season attendance record.
- Live Nation reported record revenue of $8.5 billion for the third quarter and is on track for its biggest year yet. Concertgoers are also traveling more with 32.6% more fans crossing international borders for live shows in 2025 compared with 2024.
- Social media influencers, podcasters and authors sold nearly 500% more tickets this year compared with 2024, according to StubHub, reflecting how creator-led live events are becoming a new draw.
