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There are two things you can count on right now in television: football and “Tracker.” Both once again dominated Variety’s annual look at the most-watched telecasts in primetime.
This year, a full 48 of the top 100 slots went to NFL games — up from 45 in 2024 — and that number actually jumps to 55 if you include six NFL-related studio shows (four of Fox’s “The OT,” plus a CBS post game and one from NBC’s “Football Night in America”) and one weather delay.
This year’s list was led, of course, by Fox’s coverage of Super Bowl LIX, which attracted an average of 126.7 million viewers as Philadelphia beat Kansas City on Feb. 9.
Among other pro sports, all seven of the exciting Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays World Series made it to the top 100 ranker — but on the flip side, just one of the NBA Finals (Oklahoma City vs. Indiana) is there. The NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship made it back on the top 100 telecasts lists, having been replaced last year by the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship.
With no Olympics taking up space in 2025, there was a little more room for entertainment: And live awards shows continue to rule the roost, starting with the 97th Oscars — the only non-sports telecast to clock the top 20. Back on March 2, 20.3 million people saw “Anora” take the best picture prize — up slightly from 20.2 in 2024 and 19.4 million in 2023. CBS’ Grammys kudocast dipped to 16.2 million viewers in 2025, down from 18.1 million last year, but still good enough for No. 33. And making its way back on the chart this year (for the first time since 2020) was CBS’ 82nd Golden Globes, at a strong 9.9 million viewers.
Those weren’t the only special events to make the list. NBC’s “Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Special” was a smash, beating any regular primetime series performance with a whopping 16.5 million viewers.
But the real hero for a second year in a row is CBS’s breakout hit “Tracker,” which scored a remarkable 19 episodes on the year’s top 100 primetime telecasts ranker — more than anything except the NFL, and up from last year’s 15 slots. Also notable, particularly given the cloud now surrounding what has happened to “60 Minutes” under new CBS editor-in-chief Bari Weiss, the stalwart newsmagazine last seven slots in the top 100 this year (up from four last year).
Other entertainment entries included the Season 34 finale of ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars,” which scored its best season ender in nearly a decade. Also: the post-Super Bowl episode of Fox’s gamer “The Floor” enjoyed tremendous sampling behind the Big Game, and the series premiere of CBS’ procedural drama “Watson,” which aired behind the AFC championship in January.
Among all outlets, CBS led with the most slots with 35 (up from 25 last year), thanks to all those “Tracker” and “60 Minutes” episodes. Next was NBC with 20, then ABC (15), Fox (14), Prime Video (12) and ESPN (4).
Below, our ratings roundup of the year’s most-watched primetime telecasts (in Live+7 ratings), according to broadcast and cable measurements, in both total viewers and adults 18-49.
[For historical record, here are previous year-end telecast rankers: 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015.]
Rank | PROGRAM (NETWORK) | VIEWERS | DATE AIRED |
1. | Super Bowl LIX: Philadelphia vs. Kansas City (Fox) | 126,659,000 | 2/9/2025 |
2. | AFC Championship: Kansas City vs. Buffalo (CBS) | 57,766,000 | 1/26/2025 |
3. | AFC Divisional Playoff: Buffalo vs. Baltimore (CBS) | 43,135,000 | 1/19/2025 |
4. | NFC Playoff: Washington vs. Detroit (Fox) | 35,017,000 | 1/18/2025 |
5. | World Series Game 7: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Fox) | 27,053,000 | 11/1/2025 |
6. | NFL Playoff: Washington vs. Tampa Bay (NBC) | 26,388,000 | 1/12/2025 |
7. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Minnesota vs. Detroit (NBC) | 25,988,000 | 1/5/2025 |
8. | NFL Thursday Night Special: Cincinnati vs. Baltimore (NBC) | 25,492,000 | 11/27/2025 |
9. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Detroit vs. Kansas City (NBC) | 24,742,000 | 10/12/2025 |
10. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Green Bay vs. Dallas (NBC) | 24,054,000 | 9/28/2025 |
11. | NFL Thursday Night Special: Dallas vs. Philadelphia (NBC) | 23,510,000 | 9/4/2025 |
12. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Green Bay vs. Pittsburgh (NBC) | 23,166,000 | 10/26/2025 |
13. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Kansas City vs. NY Giants (NBC) | 22,949,000 | 9/21/2025 |
14. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Pittsburgh vs. Baltimore (Prime Video) | 22,173,000 | 1/11/2025 |
15. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Baltimore vs. Buffalo (NBC) | 21,949,000 | 9/7/2025 |
16. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Detroit vs. Philadelphia (NBC) | 21,254,000 | 11/16/2025 |
17. | The 97th Oscars (ABC) | 20,283,000 | 3/2/2025 |
18. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Buffalo vs. New England (NBC) | 19,631,000 | 10/5/2025 |
19. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Atlanta vs. Minnesota (NBC) | 19,374,000 | 9/14/2025 |
20. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Pittsburgh vs. LA Chargers (NBC) | 18,698,000 | 11/9/2025 |
21. | NCAA Men’s Basketball Finals: Florida vs. Houston (CBS) | 18,277,000 | 4/7/2025 |
22. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Atlanta vs. San Francisco (NBC) | 18,009,000 | 10/19/2025 |
23. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Washington vs. Green Bay (Prime Video) | 17,884,000 | 9/11/2025 |
24. | World Series Game 6: LA Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Fox) | 17,768,000 | 10/31/2025 |
25. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Denver vs. Washington (NBC) | 17,584,000 | 11/30/2025 |
26. | NBA Finals Game 7: Oklahoma City vs. Indiana (ABC) | 16,695,000 | 6/22/2025 |
27. | NFL Weather Delay (NBC) | 16,683,000 | 9/4/2025 |
28. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Buffalo vs. Miami (Prime Video) | 16,637,000 | 9/18/2025 |
29. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Tampa Bay vs. LA Rams (NBC) | 16,602,000 | 11/23/2025 |
30. | Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Special (NBC) | 16,498,000 | 2/16/2025 |
31. | NCAA Final Four: Duke vs. Houston (CBS) | 16,480,000 | 4/5/2025 |
32. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Philadelphia vs. NY Giants (Prime Video) | 16,319,000 | 10/9/2025 |
33. | 67th Grammy Awards (CBS) | 16,232,000 | 2/2/2025 |
34. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Pittsburgh vs. Cincinnati (Prime Video) | 16,171,000 | 10/16/2025 |
35. | NFL Sunday Night Football: Seattle vs. Washington (NBC) | 15,693,000 | 11/2/2025 |
36. | NFL Thursday Night Football: San Francisco vs. LA Rams (Prime Video) | 15,250,000 | 10/2/2025 |
37. | 60 Minutes: S58E6 President Trump; Guinness World Records (CBS) | 14,991,000 | 11/2/2025 |
38. | NCAA Basketball — Bridge (CBS) | 14,957,000 | 4/5/2025 |
39. | The Floor (Fox) | 14,826,000 | 2/9/2025 |
40. | World Series Game 4: LA Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Fox) | 14,608,000 | 10/28/2025 |
41. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Buffalo vs. Houston (Prime Video) | 14,396,000 | 11/20/2025 |
42. | World Series Game 5: LA Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Fox) | 14,359,000 | 10/29/2025 |
43. | NFL Wild Card Game on ABC: LA Rams vs. Minnesota (ABC) | 14,348,000 | 1/13/2025 |
44. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Seattle vs. Arizona (Prime Video) | 14,058,000 | 9/25/2025 |
45. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Las Vegas vs. Denver (Prime Video) | 14,016,000 | 11/6/2025 |
46. | NFL on ABC: Cincinnati vs. Pittsburgh (ABC) | 13,915,000 | 1/4/2025 |
47. | The OT (Fox) | 13,838,000 | 9/14/2025 |
48. | NFL Thursday Night Football: NY Jets vs. New England (Prime Video) | 13,629,000 | 11/13/2025 |
49. | NFL Monday Night Football on ABC: Cincinnati vs. Denver (ABC) | 13,275,000 | 9/29/2025 |
50. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Minnesota vs. LA Chargers (Prime Video) | 13,225,000 | 10/23/2025 |
51. | NFL Monday Night Football on ABC: Chicago vs. Washington (ABC) | 13,071,000 | 10/13/2025 |
52. | NFL Monday Night Football: Carolina vs. San Francisco (ESPN) | 12,476,000 | 11/24/2025 |
53. | NFL Thursday Night Football: Baltimore vs. Miami (Prime Video) | 12,472,000 | 10/30/2025 |
54. | NFL Monday Night Football on ABC: Philadelphia vs. Green Bay (ABC) | 12,448,000 | 11/10/2025 |
55. | World Series Game 1: LA Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Fox) | 12,329,000 | 10/24/2025 |
56. | NFL Monday Night Football on ABC: Kansas City vs. Jacksonville (ABC) | 12,197,000 | 10/6/2025 |
57. | NFL Monday Night Football on ABC: Washington vs. Kansas City (ABC) | 12,181,000 | 10/27/2025 |
58. | NFL Monday Night Football on ABC: Detroit vs. Baltimore (ABC) | 12,168,000 | 9/22/2025 |
59. | NFL Monday Night Football on ABC: Minnesota vs. Chicago (ABC) | 11,991,000 | 9/8/2025 |
60. | Tracker: S3E3 “First Fire” (CBS) | 11,822,000 | 11/2/2025 |
61. | 60 Minutes: S58E5 On the Brink; Dr. Attia Will See You Now; The Mentalist (CBS) | 11,759,000 | 10/26/2025 |
62. | CBS NFL National Post Game (CBS) | 11,661,000 | 9/7/2025 |
63. | 60 Minutes: S58E8 The President’s Parson; Anthropic; Chess Boxing (CBS) | 11,590,000 | 11/16/2025 |
64. | 60 Minutes: S58E10 Polymarket; CRISPR Kids; Lamine Yamal (CBS) | 11,509,000 | 11/30/2025 |
65. | World Series Game 2: LA Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Fox) | 11,466,000 | 10/25/2025 |
66. | Tracker: S2E13 “Neptune” (CBS) | 11,275,000 | 3/16/2025 |
67. | Tracker: S3E7 “Eat the Rich” (CBS) | 11,247,000 | 11/30/2025 |
68. | World Series Game 3: LA Dodgers vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Fox) | 11,229,000 | 10/27/2025 |
69. | The OT (Fox) | 11,168,000 | 9/21/2025 |
70. | Football Night in America Pt. 3 (NBC) | 11,148,000 | 1/5/2025 |
71. | Tracker: S2E20 “Echo Ridge” (CBS) | 11,123,000 | 5/11/2025 |
72. | Tracker: S2E10 “Nightingale” (CBS) | 11,106,000 | 2/23/2025 |
73. | Tracker: S2E15 “The Grey Goose” (CBS) | 11,001,000 | 3/30/2025 |
74. | Tracker: S2E16 “The Mercy Shot” (CBS) | 10,887,000 | 4/13/2025 |
75. | Tracker: S3E1 “The Process” (CBS) | 10,884,000 | 10/19/2025 |
76. | Watson: S1E1 “Pilot” (CBS) | 10,881,000 | 1/26/2025 |
77. | Tracker: S2E19 “Rules of the Game” (CBS) | 10,877,000 | 5/4/2025 |
78. | 60 Minutes: S58E3 The China Hack; Booms, Busts and Bubbles; The Road to Damascus (CBS) | 10,721,000 | 10/12/2025 |
79. | Tracker: S2E12 “Monster” (CBS) | 10,679,000 | 3/9/2025 |
80. | Tracker: S3E2 “Leverage” (CBS) | 10,653,000 | 10/26/2025 |
81. | Tracker: S3E4 “No Man’s Land” (CBS) | 10,630,000 | 11/9/2025 |
82. | Tracker: S3E6 “Angel” (CBS) | 10,576,000 | 11/23/2025 |
83. | Tracker: S2E17 “Memories” (CBS) | 10,519,000 | 4/20/2025 |
84. | 60 Minutes: S58E1 A Lonely Voice; The Mystery of the Eagle S; Dana White (CBS) | 10,489,000 | 9/28/2025 |
85. | Sunday Night College Football on ABC: Miami vs. Notre Dame (ABC) | 10,472,000 | 8/31/2025 |
86. | Tracker: S3E5 “The Old Ways” (CBS) | 10,453,000 | 11/16/2025 |
87. | Monday Night Football on ABC: Dallas vs. Las Vegas (ABC) | 10,446,000 | 11/17/2025 |
88. | Tracker: S2E14 “Exodus” (CBS) | 10,426,000 | 3/23/2025 |
89. | The OT (Fox) | 10,340,000 | 11/9/2025 |
90. | Tracker: S2E18 “Collision” (CBS) | 10,316,000 | 4/27/2025 |
91. | 60 Minutes: S57E29 Zelenskyy; Greenland; Banana Ball (CBS) | 10,310,000 | 4/13/2025 |
92. | NFL Wildcard: Minnesota vs. LA Rams (ESPN) | 10,288,000 | 1/13/2025 |
93. | The OT (Fox) | 10,224,000 | 10/5/2025 |
94. | Dancing With the Stars: S34E11 Finale (ABC) | 10,208,000 | 11/25/2025 |
95. | NFL Monday Night Football: Detroit vs. Baltimore (ESPN) | 10,104,000 | 9/22/2025 |
96. | Tracker: S2E11 “Shades of Gray” (CBS) | 10,089,000 | 3/2/2025 |
97. | Tracker: S2E9 “The Disciple” (CBS) | 10,010,000 | 2/16/2025 |
98. | 82nd Golden Globe Awards (CBS) | 9,877,000 | 1/5/2025 |
99. | NFL Monday Night Football: LA Chargers vs. Las Vegas (ESPN) | 9,761,000 | 9/15/2025 |
100. | NFL Monday Night Football on ABC: Arizona vs. Dallas (ABC) | 9,703,000 | 11/3/2025 |
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