NBC: 32.4 million watch Saturday events at Paris Olympics

The Olympic Rings affixed to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. (Photo by Ibex73, Graphic by The Desk)

More than 32 million American households tuned in to watch some or all of NBC’s coverage of the 2024 Summer Olympic Games from Paris on Saturday, the network said in a statement.

The total number of people who watched NBC’s coverage of the games — 32.4 million — include around 4.7 million subscribers of Peacock who streamed some or all events on Saturday, according to data shared by NBC Sports.

The figure marked an 83 percent improvement compared to ratings for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games from Tokyo, which was delayed to 2021 due to the coronavirus health pandemic.

Broadcast viewership data is provided by Nielsen Media, while streaming data is collated by Adobe Analytics. The data includes viewership on NBC’s flagship broadcast network, as well as live and replay coverage of events from NBC-owned cable networks like CNBC, E! and USA Network. It also includes data from two pop-up channels — Paris Extra 1 and Paris Extra 2 — that are available on some pay TV platforms, and world feeds from the Olympic Broadcasting Services that are available only through Peacock.

“Highlighted by Caeleb Dressel and Simone Manuel anchoring respective gold and silver medal-winning 4x100m freestyle relays, a bronze for Katie Ledecky in the 400m free, victory for the U.S. men’s soccer team, beach volleyball, diving, and men’s gymnastics qualifiers, live coverage in the afternoon (Paris Prime: 2-5 p.m. ET) was followed by a prime-time presentation (8-11 p.m. ET/PT),” a spokesperson for NBC Sports said in a press release. “Saturday’s blockbuster audience follows Friday’s Opening Ceremony, which was the most watched for a Summer Olympics since 2012, with 28.6 million viewers.”

On Saturday, NBC said the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympic Games grabbed 28.6 million viewers to NBC and Peacock, marking the highest viewership for the event since the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London. The data includes the live broadcast that aired early Friday morning on NBC and Peacock, and an edited prime-time replay on NBC stations and affiliates.

NBC holds the domestic telecast rights to the Summer Olympic Games and the companion Winter Olympic Games through 2032. All live events from the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris are streamed through Peacock, which starts at $8 per month.