Troy Polamalu at the most-watched Super Bowl in history. Credit: Getty Images
Wrong. Believe it or not, the number of viewers with their eyes glued to the "big game" varies wildly from year to year.
While it just so happens that last year's contest between Arizona and Pittsburgh was officially the most-watched Super Bowl ever (98.7 million viewers) and the previous year's Super Bowl XLII came in second (97.5 million) -- according to Nielsen -- the majority of the top 10 most watched Super Bowls didn't occur within the past decade.
In fact, coming in a #3 is the 1996 Super Bowl featuring the Cowboys and Steelers. What's even more impressive is that the 5th most-watched Super Bowl of all time was played in 1986, featuring Chicago and New England (who just so happen to be two of the largest U.S. media markets). That game pulled in a whopping 92.5 million viewers.
Which team has made the most appearances in the top 10 most-watched Super Bowls? It's a three-way tie between the Cowboys (3), Patriots (3), and Steelers (3) ... all of whom will be watching from home this year.
So, this year as you're stuffing your face full of burgers and watching the big game, realize that we are at the pinnacle of a Super Bowl ratings era and no one knows how long it will last.
