Tom Brady #12 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers passes in opposition to the Dallas Cowboys in the course of the third quarter at Raymond James Stadium on September 09, 2021 in Tampa, Florida.
Mike Ehrmann | Getty Images
The National Football League began its 2021 season with an thrilling contest that includes two prime quarterbacks, and a stadium of followers, which helped it lure essentially the most viewers since 2015.
NBC mentioned its 2021 NFL opener between the defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Dallas Cowboys averaged 26 million complete viewers on Thursday and peaked at 25.Four million viewers between 9:45 p.m. and 10 p.m. Eastern.
The recreation marked a 20% improve in viewership from final yr’s NFL kickoff that includes the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans. That contest averaged 19.three million viewers and was the primary NFL recreation in the course of the pandemic.
The 2020 NFL opener confronted competitors from the National Basketball Association League, Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer and tennis’ U.S. Open. Those leagues performed on the similar time because of the pandemic postponements, which impacted NFL viewership. By comparability, the 2019 opener that includes the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears averaged roughly 22 million viewers.
The Bucs beat the Cowboys, 31-29, behind Tom Brady’s late fourth-quarter drive, resulting in the game-winning discipline objective. Brady, 44, completed the sport finishing 32-of-50 passes and 4 touchdowns. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott additionally placed on a present, throwing for 403 yards and three touchdowns.
NBC, the guardian firm of CNBC, mentioned the 2021 contest averaged 24.Four million viewers on TV and was the most-watched kickoff recreation for the reason that Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots opener in 2015. That recreation additionally featured Brady and attracted 27.Four million viewers.
Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Dak Prescott (4) throws a go in the course of the common season recreation between the Dallas Cowboys and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on September 09, 2021 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
Cliff Welch | Icon Sportswire | Getty Images
Top markets for the 2021 NFL opener included Dallas, San Antonio and Austin, Texas; Tampa Bay, Florida; and Providence, Rhode Island.
According to promoting information agency EDO, the community introduced in an estimated advert spend of greater than $60 million for the 2021 NFL opener, up 16% from final yr. EDO measures advertisements through search engine visibility, which quantifies advert engagement 5 to 10 minutes after an advert airs.
The agency advised CNBC crypto and monetary providers corporations shared 18% of complete search engagement for advertisements that appeared in the course of the Bucs vs. Cowboys matchup, whereas corporations within the playing class shared solely 2%. The common advert in final evening’s recreation generated 21% extra engagement than final yr’s contest.
“Last night’s opening game was great news for NFL advertisers, NFL broadcast partners, and the league,” mentioned EDO CEO Kevin Krim through e-mail. “We saw strong year-over-year performance with top search scores significantly higher than last year’s opener.”
