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The NFL made history with NBCUniversal's streaming service Peacock during the first round of the 2023-24 NFL playoffs when the Kansas City Chiefs squared off against the Miami Dolphins on Saturday.
It was the first time a postseason game was broadcast exclusively on a streaming platform while not being aired on national television. Fans in Miami and Kansas City could view the game on local channels, though.
As per reports from USA Today, Peacock shelled out a whopping $110 million for the rights to broadcast one playoff game. The Chiefs-Dolphins contest was widely referred to as the 'Peacock Exclusive AFC Wild Card' matchup.
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While the Chiefs beat the Dolphins 26-7 on the night to progress to the next round of the playoffs, the NFL and Peacock were seemingly the big winners, in terms of sheer numbers.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell spoke highly on the league's partnership with Peacock:
“We couldn’t be prouder of our partnership with Peacock and are thrilled with the record-breaking numbers from the first-ever exclusively live streamed NFL playoff game."
"For several years now, we have been consistently expanding the digital distribution of our games, and as these results show, the NFL is not only serving our fans who consume our content in a multitude of ways but helping to shape the future of the entire sports and entertainment industry.”
How many fans tuned in to watch the NFL's 'Peacock Exclusive AFC Wild Card' match?
According to reports from Nielsen, 27.6 million viewers tuned in to watch the Chiefs-Dolphins AFC Wild Card game on Saturday. The contest had an average peak viewership of 24.6 million viewers during the second quarter between 9:15 p.m. ET to 9:30 p.m. ET.
Furthermore, Peacock recorded its largest single-day audience usage, engagement and time spent, with a record 16.3 million concurrent devices on Saturday.
The Chiefs-Dolphins also game set the record for being the most-streamed live event in US history. As per reports, the matchup consumed 30% of online traffic in the country.
The Chiefs will now look forward to the Divisional Round but are yet to find out whom they face in the next round of the postseason. Kansas City could play either host Houston Texans or travel to face the Buffalo Bills in its next game.
With Patrick Mahomes leading their offense once again this season, the Chiefs will back themselves to defend their Super Bowl crown.
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