Huge Hall of Fame Game Ratings Point to Another Big Year for NFL

Last Thursday's Pro Football Hall of Fame Game between the Cardinals and Panthers delivered 7 million average viewers on NBC Sports and the Peacock streaming platform, marking the highest preseason opener in the NFL since 2021. This figure also represents a 1% increase from last year's matchup involving the Chargers and Lions. The game's viewership surpassed that of every MLB regular-season game this season, a 2026 Home Run Derby on Netflix, and all NHL Stanley Cup Final games in June.

Notably, the teams were relatively unpopular, with the Panthers recently making the playoffs in a weak NFC South division and the Cardinals as one of the biggest underdogs for the upcoming 2026 season. Despite the NFL's 2026 schedule release in May, optimism for the season's success remains high, owing to the league's overall strength, broad viewership appeal, and the active engagement of domestic rights holders.

The forthcoming enhancement in Nielsen's co-viewing methodology, a third significant change in audience measurement within two years, is also expected to boost viewership. The Hall of Fame Game historically attracted larger audiences when aired on a Sunday night, with the 2015 Vikings-Steelers game averaging 11 million viewers on NBC.

This year's game, however, set a new preseason record. The event preceded an induction ceremony for a 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame class featuring Drew Brees, Roger Craig, Larry Fitzgerald Jr., Luke Kuechly, and Adam Vinatieri, but notably excluded Patriots owner Robert Kraft and former head coach Bill Belichick.