Trump Says RNC TV Ratings 'Beat the NFL'—What the Data Shows
Trump said RNC ratings beat the NFL, but early Nielsen data and last year's kickoff audience cast doubt on his claim.
President Donald Trump declared that television ratings for the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) midterm convention "beat the NFL," but initial audience data does not substantiate his claim. During his nearly two-hour speech at the RNC convention in Dallas on Wednesday, Trump stated that "it was really something, streaming all over the place, and really big numbers, despite going up against the NFL," and shared the statement on Truth Social. "The overall numbers beat the NFL."
Although Nielsen has not yet released complete data for the NFL season opener between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, preliminary figures from Mediaite indicate that Fox News, which aired the full Trump address, averaged around 2.5 million viewers from 9 to 11 p.m. ET. This figure is roughly comparable to Fox News's regular programming numbers and significantly less than the 28.3 million viewers who tuned in for the 2025 NFL kickoff game, according to NBC Sports.
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