Super Bowl LVIII Live: Why this could be a record-breaking game

Published 12:54 pm Wednesday, February 7, 2024

Whether you’re a diehard fan or are just tagging along with your friends, it’s time to pull out some snacks and beers and lock into your television for about four hours. It’s time to watch grown men tackle each other for an oblong pigskin, critique commercials we would generally ignore, and see whether Usher can measure up to the halftime performances of years past.

The Super Bowl is here.

Super Bowl LVIII features the Kansas City Chiefs, who are blessed with one of the greatest players ever in quarterback Patrick Mahomes, and a couple of other greats in tight end Travis Kelce and head coach Andy Reid. The trio are looking for their third ring together — and their first championship since Kelce became more colloquially known as Taylor Swift’s boyfriend.

On the other side, the San Francisco 49ers boast a young, and often-doubted, quarterback in Brock Purdy alongside a star-studded crew featuring the likes of running back Christian McCaffrey, wide receiver Deebo Samuel and defensive end Nick Bosa. They are looking to bring a Super Bowl win to the Bay Area for the first time in nearly 30 years.

HENDERSON, NEVADA – FEBRUARY 06: Brock Purdy, quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, will need to have answers for the Chiefs defense on Sunday.

Chris Unger/Getty Images

I’ll be locked in to CBS, blogging about the overall spectacle. From the Sunday broadcast, to the halftime show, to the commercials… I’ve got you covered (and there may eve be the occasional check-in on the Nickelodeon feed!).

Tune into this post as we’ll be updating this live blog all week.

If you have any thoughts about the Super Bowl, let us know on X (formerly Twitter) by tweeting at @TheStreet or talk to me directly @colincsalao. Maybe you’ll see your tweet on this blog as the game goes on!

Related: How to watch the Super Bowl: From Peacock to CBS, 2024’s game broadcasting explained

Super Bowl LVIII is shaping up to be the most-watched game in history.

The Super Bowl is the biggest annual spectacle in the United States.

The game is always the most-watched live broadcast in the country, perennially securing around 100 million viewers. Only once-in-a-lifetime feats of mankind — like, oh, humans landing on the moon for the first time ever — can garner the same level of eyeballs on television screens in the U.S.

And yet this year’s Super Bowl could be the most-watched in history.

Why?

Related: Streaming and the future of sports – Why companies are betting big on broadcast rights

The storylines are a massive help.

The Kansas City Chiefs are attempting to become the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls since Tom Brady and the New England Patriots did it in 2003 and 2004. The team is led by the near-consensus best player in the world, Patrick Mahomes, who has led the Chiefs to four Super Bowl appearances in five years. A win would give him his third title at just 28 years old, putting him squarely in the trajectory of matching or passing Brady.

Andy Reid has been with Mahomes throughout his entire career, and the 65-year-old coach has a chance to secure his fourth Super Bowl ring with a win. Reid is still a ways away from catching Bill Belichick, but a win would certainly build up his case as one of the greatest coaches ever, especially if he continues to coach Mahomes.

And we can’t forget about Travis Kelce, who has moved from being one of the biggest names in the NFL to being one of the biggest names in celebrity media, as well. The off-the-field stuff is probably clear to everyone: He is dating Taylor Swift, who is more-than-likely going to be at the game.

But Kelce also has a chance to bolster his on-the-field legacy and move up the rankings of top tight ends in the history of the game, moving him within one championship of future Hall of Fame tight end Rob Gronkowski and his four Super Bowl rings, if he carries the Chiefs. He could also silence some doubters who questioned whether his age was affecting his play after a subpar regular season (at least by his standards).

On the other side, the San Francisco 49ers are looking for revenge after losing to Mahomes and the Chiefs in 2020. They boast several new faces, but none more important that quarterback Brock Purdy. The 24-year-old former last pick in the draft is only starting for his second season, but has the opportunity to compose a true Cinderella story, unheard of in the league since the Brady days.

The 49ers are also an iconic franchise in the NFL that has not tasted a Super Bowl win in decades. Its most legendary player is Joe Montana, who won them four rings, and is often regarded as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time. It would be pretty sweet if the franchise Montana played for took down one of the QBs that’s chasing his legacy.

HENDERSON, NEVADA – FEBRUARY 06: Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs is chasing greatness and his third Super Bowl ring in four tries. 

Chris Unger/Getty Images

Outside of the obvious stories, there is precedent throughout these playoffs that this Super Bowl is set to break viewership records.

The Chiefs’ Conference Championship win over the Baltimore Ravens averaged 55.47 million viewers on CBS — making it the most-watched AFC Championship game ever — while the 49ers win over the Detroit Lions averaged 56.69 million viewers, which is the most for the NFC since 2012.

The Divisional Round game that also featured the Chiefs — a win over the Buffalo Bills — was the most-watched game of that round in history after averaging over 50 million viewers.

Related: Chiefs-Bills rivalry achieves feat the NFL has never seen before

It’s still important to note that this could be the most-watched, but not exactly the highest rated game. Nielsen segregates data by average viewership and household rating, and the latter shows the percentage of households that are watching the game in the country.

While average viewership has been trending up, that can be attributed to more population growth and accessibility of Super Bowl broadcasts. The household rating has actually been a few points down over the last few years versus where they were even before this century.

But that still shouldn’t diminish this feat. The number of eyeballs on this game is sure to attracted a wide audience. 

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