2 in 3 Adults Watch NFL

October 14, 2011

harris-football-how-watch-oct-2011.JPGAlmost two thirds of US adults say they currently watch NFL football (64%), including almost three quarters of men (73%) and more than half of women (55%), according to Adweek/Harris Poll results released in October 2011. Regionally, adults in the Midwest (69%) are 23% more likely than adults in the West (56%) to watch football.

Six in 10 US adults say that they watch NFL football on their television (60%) while fewer than one in ten say they watch on a desktop or laptop computer (8%), smart-phone (3%) or tablet computer (2%). Only 6% say they watch games live, as in they attend the games in person.

In addition, eight in 10 Americans say they never record televised sporting events (79%) while one in five say they record some games and special events (such as the Super Bowl). More than one quarter of men do this (27%) compared to 15% of women. Only 4% say they record all or most of their team’s games. And, despite watching football, nine in 10 Americans do not subscribe to any specially themed football cable or satellite TV package (90%).

Most Football Viewers Watch 5 or Less Hrs/Week

harris-football-time-oct-2011.JPGAmong the adults who say they currently watch NFL football on TV, six in 10 say they spend five hours or less per week watching football during the NFL season (60%), while more than one quarter say they spend between six and 10 hours per week watching (27%).

Regionally, adults in the Northeast and men are more likely than adults in the South, West and Midwest, as well as women, to watch between six and 10 hours of football per week (30-31% compared to 23-28%).

In addition, 7% of Americans who watch NFL football say they spend 11-15 hours per week doing so, and 6% say they spend 16 hours or more per week watching.

13% of Americans Play Fantasy Football

When Americans were asked how many hours per week, if any, they spend on fantasy football, only 13% say they spend any time on it while 87% say they do not spend any time on fantasy football. Predictably, men spend more time on fantasy football than women do (20% compared to 6%) and younger adults are more involved than those older (22% of those 18-34 spend time on it compared to 15% of those 35-44, 8% of those 45-54 and 6% of those 55 and older).

Interestingly, fantasy football seems to be much more popular or prevalent in the Northeast, as 19% of adults in the Northeast spend time on it, compared to between 10% and 12% in all other regions.

Men, Blacks Most Likely to Follow Football

Fifty-five percent of US adults follow professional football, according to Harris Poll data released earlier in October 2011. Broken down demographically, poll results show men and blacks are the groups most likely to be pro football followers.

Looking at gender differences, poll data indicates 71% of men but only 41% of women follow pro football. The other demographic breakdown that produces a similar disparity is analysis by ethnic group. This reveals that 72% of blacks, but only 54% of whites and 51% of Hispanics, follow pro football.

About the Data: This Adweek/Harris Poll was conducted online within the United States between September 9 and 13, 2011 among 2,374 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Where appropriate, this data were also weighted to reflect the composition of the adult online population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.

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