Peacock Strikes Gold With Outsized Olympics, Super Bowl Audiences

Hollywood Reporter

by Rick Porter

February 13, 2026

AI-Generated Deep Dive Summary

Peacock has made a significant impact on the streaming landscape with record-breaking audiences during the 2024 Winter Olympics and Super Bowl. As of mid-week, Peacock and NBCUniversal’s digital platforms had already surpassed previous Winter Olympics viewership combined, amassing 6.3 billion minutes of viewing for the Milan Cortina Games. This milestone highlights Peacock’s rapid growth as a streaming platform, driven by its extensive coverage of major sporting events. The platform offers live streams for every Olympic event during daytime hours in the U.S., along with its popular Gold Zone show, which aggregates live feeds from multiple sports. The Super Bowl also contributed to Peacock’s success, drawing 124.93 million viewers—second only to the all-time TV record. While most viewers tuned into NBC for the broadcast, Peacock likely saw a significant portion of the audience, particularly during the NFL season when it accounted for about 10.6% of Sunday Night Football’s cross-platform audience. This performance underscores Peacock’s ability to attract large numbers through exclusive content and strategic partnerships. Peacock’s rise comes at a pivotal time for NBCUniversal, which has invested heavily in sports rights. The company spent $7.75 billion over eight years for the Olympics and an additional $3 billion extension for future games. In contrast, the NFL deal costs $2 billion annually but generates significant revenue, such as the $110 million price tag for Peacock’s first streaming-exclusive playoff game in January 2024. While these investments are costly, they have proven to be a smart move with record-breaking viewership. For entertainment and media professionals, Peacock’s success underscores the importance of securing major event rights to drive platform growth. The platform’s ability to capture large audiences through live sports highlights its potential as a key player in the streaming wars. As Peacock continues to expand its offerings, its impact on the entertainment industry will likely only grow, making it a force to watch in the competitive world of streaming services.

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Originally published on Hollywood Reporter on 2/13/2026