RATINGS: SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL is Television's #1 Primetime Show for Ninth Consecutive Year

With last night's thrilling 49ers-Seahawks matchup, NBC concluded its 14th season of Sunday Night Football, posting its highest average viewership since the series' record 2015 season, and once again pacing to finish as primetime's #1 TV show in all key metrics for an unprecedented ninth consecutive year - adding to its record for the most consecutive years atop the charts (since 1950), based on official live plus same day data provided by Nielsen.

Most Consecutive Years, #1 Ranked Show in Primetime, Since 1950

9 years in a row - SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (2011-12 through 2019-20; on pace)

6 years in a row - AMERICAN IDOL (2005-06 through 2010-11)

5 years in a row - The Cosby Show (1985-86 through 1989-90)...tied Cheers in '89-90

5 years in a row - All in THE FAMILY (1971-72 through 1975-76)

4 years in a row - Gunsmoke (1957-58 through 1960-61)

NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL posted a Total Audience Delivery average of 20.5 million viewers in 2019 - up 5% from last year (19.6 million) and a 12% increase over 2017 (18.4 million), according to fast national live plus same day data released by Nielsen, and digital data from Adobe Analytics.

The exciting San Francisco 49ers-Seattle Seahawks 'NFC West Championship' game last night, which concluded with a defensive stop inches short of the goal line, averaged 23.3 million viewers across all platforms, ranking as NBC SNF's most-watched game ever among West Coast teams. In addition, TV-only viewership on NBC for night's game peaked at 25.7 million viewers for the thrilling conclusion from 11:15-11:28 p.m. ET.

"Last night's season finale featured the down-to-the wire drama that we love about the NFL. With exciting games featuring compelling new stars emerging at quarterback, coupled with veterans at the position who rank among the best in history, we've had a terrific season with viewership increases across the board," said Pete Bevacqua, President, NBC Sports Group. "We're looking forward to the playoffs, with the Wilson-Wentz matchup in the wild card, and a divisional game featuring the NFC #1 seed San Francisco 49ers and Jimmy Garoppolo."

FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA IS MOST-WATCHED STUDIO SHOW FOR 14TH CONSECUTIVE YEAR

NBC's FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA studio show averaged 7.3 million viewers from 7:30-8:15 p.m. ET this season - up 2% from last year (7.1 million). FNIA continues its reign as sports' most-watched weekly studio show for the 14th consecutive year (since the show's 2006 debut season). In addition, the 8-8:23 p.m. ET portion of FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA (including pre-kick coverage), averaged 12.2 million viewers (through Week 16), and a 3.5 rating among Adults 18-49, which would respectively rank No. 3 and No. 4 among regularly-scheduled primetime shows in the demographic.

SNF EASILY DELIVERS DECADE'S MOST PRIMETIME BROADCASTS WITH 20+ MILLION VIEWERS

Last night's San Francisco-Seattle matchup on NBC's SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL was the final NFL game of the Decade of the 2010s. With an average TV-only viewership of 22.8 million, 49ers-Seahawks marks the 104th NBC SNF regular-season game of the decade to average at least 20 million viewers - easily topping all other primetime shows.

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