23.5 Million Viewers, Best Since 2014

NBCUniversal is celebrating a successful Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, as Team USA secured 12 gold medals, marking their best performance ever at a Winter Games. The network also saw a shining performance in terms of viewership, with this year’s Winter Games coverage attracting an average of 23.5 million viewers across various platforms including NBC, Peacock, NBCUniversal’s digital platforms, and Versant’s USA Network and CNBC. This makes it the most-watched Winter Olympics in the U.S. since 2014.

The 17-day event, which featured 3,200 hours of coverage and 116 events, saw all 15 competition days averaging over 20 million viewers. The “Milan Prime” afternoon window and the U.S. primetime slots were particularly popular, with an average of 3.3 million viewers daily streaming across Peacock and NBCU digital platforms.

One of the standout moments of the Winter Games was the USA women’s hockey team’s victory over Canada, which became the most-watched women’s hockey game ever with 5.3 million viewers tuning in on USA Network and Peacock.

In terms of local markets, Milwaukee led the way with a 13.7 rating/49 share, followed by Minneapolis and Fort Myers, Fla. NBCU’s social media presence also saw a significant increase in engagement, with Milan Cortina Olympics content registering 4.28 billion impressions across NBC Sports social channels, a 437% increase compared to the Beijing Olympics in 2022.

Molly Solomon, the executive producer and president of NBC Olympics Production, praised the success of the Winter Games, highlighting the stunning settings, technological advancements, and unprecedented access to athletes that allowed for a captivating viewing experience. Gary Zenkel, NBC Olympics president, expressed excitement for the return of the Olympics to the United States with the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.

The Winter Olympics marked the conclusion of what NBCU referred to as “Legendary February,” which also featured the Super Bowl LX and the NBA All-Star Game. NBC Sports president Rick Cordella commended the network’s personnel for delivering a memorable month of sports entertainment to audiences across various platforms.

Peacock also saw success during the Winter Olympics, with its best month ever in terms of usage. The platform’s original content, such as “The Burbs,” experienced high viewership, with four of Peacock’s top 10 usage days and seven of its top 10 largest reach days occurring during the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Overall, the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina proved to be a successful and engaging event for both athletes and viewers, setting the stage for future Olympic Games to come.