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POLITICS · SEP 15, 2026

Donald Trump Claims GOP Convention Ratings Beat NFL

President Donald Trump claimed the Republican midterm convention outperformed the NFL in viewership despite Nielsen data showing the league drew millions more viewers.

President Donald Trump claimed that the Republican Party's midterm convention outperformed the NFL in television ratings, despite data from Nielsen showing the opposite. Trump posted on Truth Social that the event was a "major, sold out hit" and asserted that "the overall numbers beat the NFL."

Nielsen data indicates that Trump's first-night speech drew approximately 3 million viewers across Fox News, Newsmax, and NewsNation. During the same period, the NFL kickoff game between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots averaged 25.1 million viewers on NBC and Peacock.

On the second night, Trump's speech again averaged roughly 3 million viewers. In contrast, the NFL's first game in Melbourne, Australia, between the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams, averaged 18.5 million viewers on Netflix.


Reported across 4 outlets
Actors
Donald TrumpRepublican PartyNational Football LeagueNielsen

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