NFL's Championship Sunday Viewership Down 16%

Conference title games average 44.9M viewers, down from last year's 53.7M

By Tim Baysinger -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/22/2013 11:03:33 AM

The NFL averaged 44.9 million total viewers for its two conference championship games on Sunday, which was down 16% from last year and continued a trend that has gone on all postseason.

Fox's coverage of the NFC Championship between the San Francisco 49ers and Atlanta Falcons was down 14% from last year's early window to 42 million total viewers. CBS' primetime coverage of the AFC title game between the Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots averaged 47.7 million viewers, down 17% from last year's primetime game.

Viewership across all of the league's broadcast partners (with the exception of NFL Network, which increased its game slate this year) has been down and that has continued for the playoffs. Wild card weekend viewership fell 2% and divisional weekend was off by 7%.

The NFL has two more games this season, with the Pro Bowl on NBC this Sunday and Super Bowl XLVII on CBS Feb. 3.