or


[05/04/25 - 02:09 PM]
NBC and Peacock Deliver Most Watched "Run for the Roses" Since 1989, As Sovereignty Wins 151st Kentucky Derby
Viewership peaked at 21.8 million viewers from 7-7:15 p.m. ET, as Sovereignty ran to a 1 1/2-length victory over Journalism.
[via press release from NBC Sports]

NBC AND PEACOCK DELIVER MOST WATCHED "RUN FOR THE ROSES" SINCE 1989, AS SOVEREIGNTY WINS 151ST KENTUCKY DERBY

Audience for NBC Sports' Milestone 25th Kentucky Derby Presentation Peaked at 21.8 Million Viewers - Best Ever for NBC Sports

Led by Peacock, 2025 Kentucky Derby is Most Streamed Ever

***

Derby-Winner Sovereignty Invited to Run in 150th Preakness Stakes -- Sat., May 17 at 4 p.m. ET on NBC & Peacock

STAMFORD, Conn. - May 4, 2025 - NBC Sports' milestone 25th presentation of the Kentucky Derby delivered an NBC Sports-record average of 17.7 million viewers on NBC and Peacock - marking the largest Kentucky Derby audience since 1989 (18.5 million viewers, won by Sunday Silence) and a 6% increase from last year (16.7 million viewers for Mystik Dan's victory in a three-horse photo finish).

Viewership peaked at 21.8 million viewers from 7-7:15 p.m. ET, as Sovereignty ran to a 1½-length victory over Journalism. The peak audience was the largest ever for an NBC Sports presentation of the Kentucky Derby (up 8% from 20.1 million last year).

Led by Peacock, the "Run for the Roses" posted NBC Sports' largest streaming audience for a horse racing event with an Average Minute Audience (AMA) of 959,000 viewers - up 34% from last year (714,000) and nearly tripling 2023 (371,000).

NBC Sports has averaged 15+ million viewers across all platforms for 10 of the last 12 Kentucky Derby races held in May (2013-2024, excludes 2020 Covid-impacted event which was moved to September).

With 17.7 million viewers (6:33-7:24 p.m. ET), the 2025 Kentucky Derby will rank as NBC's most-watched Saturday program since the NFL Wild Card Playoffs in January 2024 (excluding Paris Olympics).

Total Audience Delivery is based upon live-plus-same day custom fast national figures from Nielsen and digital data from Adobe Analytics. Official metrics will be available on Tuesday.

150TH PREAKNESS STAKES ON NBC AND PEACOCK, MAY 17: Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty has been invited to take the next step towards the Triple Crown at the Preakness Stakes, in two weeks on Saturday, May 17. NBC Sports' coverage of the 150th Preakness Stakes from Pimlico Racecourse in Baltimore, Md., begins with the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes on Friday, May 16, at 4:30 p.m. ET on Peacock. NBC Sports presents the 150th Preakness Stakes on Saturday, May 17, at 4 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock, with coverage beginning at 2 p.m. ET on CNBC and Peacock.

--NBC SPORTS--





  [may 2025]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
    


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)




most recent ratings | view all posts
[05/28/26 - 03:23 PM]
2026 NBA Eastern Conference Finals Presented by Dunkin' Finishes Strong with Average Audience of 7.4 Million Viewers Across ESPN and ABC
Additionally, Game 4 on ESPN averaged 7.2 million viewers, marking the most-viewed Eastern Conference Finals Game 4 across any network since 2018.
[05/28/26 - 11:00 AM]
CBS Outpaces Competitors with Eight of the Top 25 Series Across All Streaming and Broadcast Originals in Nielsen's All-Series Ranker
CBS has the most top 25 series of any streaming or broadcast competitor and twice as many as its closest broadcast competitor, including six series with 10+ million viewers.
[05/28/26 - 10:31 AM]
FOX Delivers Most-Watched UFL Game Since League Started in 2024
1,593,000 viewers watched as Louisville defeated Dallas 37-23 on Sunday.
[05/28/26 - 10:26 AM]
FOX Scores with 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500
6,635,000 viewers watched Felix Rosenqvist edge David Malukas by 0.0233 seconds with a last-lap pass to win the Indy 500 Sunday on FOX.
[05/27/26 - 03:13 PM]
FOX Saturday Baseball Draws Strong Audience Over Holiday Weekend
2,355,000 viewers tuned in to the two-game slate highlighted by the Dodgers' 11-3 victory over the Brewers in most of the country.
[05/26/26 - 12:03 PM]
"Off Campus" Season 1 Has Reached 36 Million Viewers Worldwide in Its First 12 Days
Off Campus. On everyone's screen.
[05/26/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of May 18 - In Ruthless Pursuit, "Nemesis" Steals No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
Retirement in "The Boroughs" is anything but sleepy as the Duffer Brothers-produced sci-fi series took No. 2 on the list with 5.6 million views.
[05/26/26 - 11:00 AM]
"Dutton Ranch" Is the Biggest Original Series Debut in Paramount+ History
In addition to its record-setting performance on Paramount+, "Dutton Ranch" is also the #1 streaming series according to Nielsen based on average audience for the week of May 11 according to preliminary data.
[05/21/26 - 02:32 PM]
ESPN Delivered Most-Watched NBA Eastern Conference Finals Game 1 Since 2018
The New York Knicks overtime victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers on May 19 generated an average audience of 7.1 million viewers and peaked with 8.87 million viewers at 10:45 p.m. ET.

[05/21/26 - 02:00 PM]
"Survivor" Historic 50th Season Concludes with Most-Watched Finale Since 2020
The season finale drew an average of 5.78 million viewers, based on Nielsen Preliminary panel only data.
[05/21/26 - 07:01 AM]
NBC Sports' 2026 SuperMotocross Coverage Delivers Viewership Gains and Milestones
The seven races featured on NBC and Peacock averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 468,000 viewers on NBC and Peacock, up 8% vs. 2025.
[05/20/26 - 03:05 PM]
NBC and Peacock Deliver the Most-Watched Western Conference Finals Game 1 Ever for Monday's Spurs-Thunder Double Overtime Thriller
Coverage peaked with 12.0 million viewers from 11:30-11:43 p.m. ET for the second overtime and game's conclusion.
[05/20/26 - 03:04 PM]
ESPN Aired Its Most Viewed 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Second Round of the Current Rights Deal
Collectively all 11 Second Round games, with nine airing on ESPN and two on ABC, delivered 2.2 million viewers, up 76% year-over-year.

[05/20/26 - 07:36 AM]
After Record-Setting 2025 Season, "Sunday Night Football" Finishes Fall-Spring TV Season as Primetime's No. 1 Show for Unprecedented 15th Consecutive Year
The series averaged 23.5 million viewers in 2025, marking the show's best-ever viewership - up nearly 1 million viewers from the prior record for the series set a decade ago (22.6 million in 2015 season) and an increase of 9% over the '24 season (21.6 million).
[05/19/26 - 02:52 PM]
Subway Series Delivers Second Most-Watched FOX Saturday Baseball Telecast of the Season
2,500,000 viewers tuned-in to the two-game slate highlighted by the Mets' 6-3 victory over the Yankees in most of the country.