By Matt Johnson, Sportsnaut
The NFL hoped for the best with a fully virtual 2020 NFL Draft, hoping fans across the country would welcome the distraction. The league’s decision not to postpone the draft paid off in epic fashion with the best ratings the event has ever seen.
Things started well on Thursday with more than 15.6 million people tuning in to set the league’s single-day record for a draft broadcast. The success only continued from there with record Day 2 viewership totals blowing past the marks the league saw in the 2019 NFL Draft.
The NFL announced on Sunday that the 2020 NFL Draft is the most-watched ever with more than 55 million viewers watching during the three-day event. The mark represented a 35 percent growth from the entire audience total from 2019, just one of multiple records set this weekend.
“Draft-A-Thon LIVE” helped raise $6.6 million during 2020 @NFLDraft, contributing to the collective total of more than $100 million raised by the NFL Family to support COVID-19 relief efforts #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/iruJXheBGI
— NFL Media (@NFLMedia) April 26, 2020
An average of 8.4 million people watched all three days of the 2020 NFL Draft, marking a massive jump from the 6.2 million viewers that watched all three days of the draft in 2019.
The Draft-A-Thon, which raised nearly $100 million for COVID-19 relief efforts, also experienced incredible success on streaming services. The live fundraising campaign drew more than 5.4 million total daily viewers, with the audience watching for nearly 50 million minutes on digital and social platforms.
While many feared how a virtual 2020 NFL Draft would unfold, it proved to be a hit among teams and fans. Credit to Roger Goodell, who received extensive praise for overseeing an incredible three-day event in such an unprecedented time.