More than 22 million people watched Ohio State win its ninth national title.
ESPN reported Wednesday that Ohio State’s matchup with Notre Dame in the college football national title game averaged 22.1 million viewers, making it the most-watched non-NFL sporting event since the Buckeyes victory against Oregon in the Rose Bowl.
The 2025 #CFBPlayoffs #NationalChampionship between @OhioStateFB & @NDFootball tops CFB playoff standings
22.1 million viewers
Most-watched non-NFL sporting event of the past year
Peaked with 26.1 million viewers from 8:30 a.m. to 8:45 p.m. ET pic.twitter.com/PEOFgGYmB7—ESPNPR (@ESPNPR) January 22, 2025
The national championship game marked the third time Ohio State topped 19 million viewers in this season’s College Football Playoff, following the Rose Bowl against Oregon (21.1 million) and the Cotton Bowl against Texas (19.6 million). The Buckeyes’ game against Tennessee drew 14.3 million.
According to Stewart Mandel and Scott Dochterman of The Athletic, Ohio State’s regular season average of 6.8 million TVs per game ranks second in college football behind Georgia (8.6 million). The Buckeyes played many of the most-watched regular season games overall, including matchups with Michigan (12.3 million), Oregon (10.2 million), Penn State (9.94 million) and Indiana (9.33 million).
