2024 Summer Olympics could be the most watched televised event in eight years

Key stat: The past two Summer Olympic games, taking place in Rio (2016) and Tokyo (2020), each attracted over 3 billion viewers worldwide, according to the International Olympic Committee (IOC)'s official reporting, making them some of the most widely watched televised events over the last eight years.

Beyond the chart:

• NBCUniveral expects even higher viewership for this Olympic games as it is the first in several years to take place outside of Asia, providing Western audiences with better viewing times.
• The company has set record ad revenues for this year’s Olympics, securing $1.2 billion in ad commitments, with over $350 million from new advertisers.
• Peacock, NBCU’s streaming service, is raising subscription prices ahead of the games. Ad-supported subscriptions will increase by $2 to $7.99 monthly and ad-free subscriptions will jump to $13.99.
• We forecast total US TV ad spend (including connected TV and linear) will reach $87.74 billion in 2024. Linear TV will continue to make up the majority of that spend through 2028, but its share is declining as spend on CTV grows.

Use this chart:

• Illustrate the advertising opportunities of major sporting events like the Olympics and World Cup.
• Highlight the value of niche, non-sporting events like the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
• Evaluate the viewership of televised events worldwide.
• Explore the potential of pairing TV campaigns with other streaming platforms (like Spotify) to expand audience reach of events like Eurovision.

More like this:

• Shoppable media helps brands monetize live events
• Sports ad inventory growth creates new, niche opportunities for brands
• 5 key stats on CTV: Growth normalizes, subscriptions reign, and ad spend evolves
• Reallocation from linear TV is the No. 1 source for funding CTV ad spend increase

Note: The Rio 2016 Olympics took place between August 5-21, 2016. The Tokyo 2020 Olympics took place between July 23-Augst 8, 2022. The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle took place on May 19 in 2018. The final match of the World Cup 2022 took place on December 18, 2022. The final match of the World Cup 2018 took place on July 15, 2018. The final match of the UEFA EURO 2020 took place on July 11 in 2021. The three live shows for Eurovision 2019 took place on May 14, 16, and 18 in 2019. The three live shows for Eurovision 2021 took place on May 18, 20, and 22 in 2021. The three live shows for Eurovision 2022 took place on May 1, 12, and 14 in 2022. The three live shows for Eurovision 2023 took place on May 9, 11, and 13 in 2023. The three live shows for Eurovision 2024 took place on May 8, 9, and 11 in 2024. Super Bowl 2023 took place on February 12 in 2023. Super Bowl 2020 took place on February 2 in 2020. Super Bowl 2022 took place on February 13 in 2022. Super Bowl 2021 took place on February 7 in 2021.

Methodology: Viewership metrics are from each organizer's or broadcaster's official report or press release for the respective event. Data and figures represent activity tracked by each organizer or broadcaster. Broader industry metrics may vary.

Citation: Figures for the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games were from the International Olympic Committee (IOC)'s official reporting. Figures for the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were reported by the Daily Express. Figures for the final World Cup matches in 2018 and 2022 were from the Fédération internationale de football association (FIFA)'s official reporting. Figures for the final match of the UEFA EURO 2020 were from the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA)'s official reporting. Figures for Eurovision between 2019 and 2024 were from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU)'s official reporting and forecast. Figures for the Super Bowl between 2020 and 2023 were from Nielsen, as cited in a company blog post.