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Doritos Super Bowl Spot Was the Most-Watched Ad of All Time

3 minute read | February 2010

A Doritos commercial featuring two men attacked in a gym for stealing someone else’s Doritos was seen by an estimated 116.2 million viewers last Super Bowl Sunday, making it the most watched television commercial of all time, according to The Nielsen Company. The ad ran in the game’s fourth quarter at 9:30pm ET.

“For an advertiser to make its pitch to more than 116 million viewers at once shows that the Super Bowl remains the single largest television platform for marketers,” said Pat McDonough, senior vice president for insights and analysis at Nielsen. “And with Super Bowl advertisers adding thousands – if not millions – of commercial views through online and social media exposure, they are able to extend their multi-million dollar investments beyond the game itself.”

Most Viewed Ads During Super Bowl XLIV
RANK Commercial Time of Air (ET) # of Viewers
1 DORITOS/Gym 9:30:01 PM 116,231,920
2 AUDI/Green Police 9:26:29 PM 115,647,840
3 ELECTRONIC ARTS/Dante’s Inferno 9:15:22 PM 115,063,760
4 HONDA/Squirrel 9:20:20 PM 114,771,720
5 TACO BELL/It Rocks 9:27:29 PM 114,771,720
6 BUD LIGHT/Book Party 9:32:13 PM 114,771,720
7 HYUNDAI/Built By Hand 9:32:43 PM 114,771,720
8 BUDWEISER/Horse Fence 9:15:52 PM 113,603,560
9 US CENSUS BUREAU/Production Mtg 8:49:23 PM 113,019,480
10 E*TRADE/5 Babies 9:33:13 PM 112,727,440
Source: The Nielsen Company

Audi’s “Green Police” ad earned the title of second most viewed ad with 115.6 million watching. Electronic Arts’ spot for its new game Dante’s Inferno drew 115.1 million.

Focus on the Family’s ad featuring Tim Tebow tied for the least viewed ad of Super Bowl XLIV, despite the heavy pre-game buzz going into the game.

Only paid advertisements were included in the complete list. But Nielsen’s analysis found that the much-discussed 15-second promo for CBS’s “Late Show with David Letterman” featuring cameo appearances by Jay Leno and Oprah Winfrey was seen by an estimated 110.4 million viewers.

Until Sunday, the season finale of M*A*S*H in 1983 aired the highest commercial minute, when an estimated 108.9 million viewers watched the second half hour of the program.

Most Viewed Ads During Super Bowl XLIV
RANK Commercial Length of Spot Time of Air (ET) # of Viewers
1 DORITOS/Gym 30 9:30:01 PM 116,231,920
2 AUDI/Green Police 60 9:26:29 PM 115,647,840
3 ELECTRONIC ARTS/Dante’s Inferno 30 9:15:22 PM 115,063,760
4 HONDA/Squirrel 30 9:20:20 PM 114,771,720
5 TACO BELL/It Rocks 30 9:27:29 PM 114,771,720
6 BUD LIGHT/Book Party 30 9:32:13 PM 114,771,720
7 HYUNDAI/Built By Hand 30 9:32:43 PM 114,771,720
8 BUDWEISER/Horse Fence 60 9:15:52 PM 113,603,560
9 US CENSUS BUREAU/Production Mtg 30 8:49:23 PM 113,019,480
10 E*TRADE/5 Babies 15 9:33:13 PM 112,727,440
11 SKECHERS/Shape-Ups 15 9:36:56 PM 112,435,400
12 GO DADDY/TV Anchor 30 9:37:11 PM 112,435,400
13 DENNYS/Chicken Scream 15 9:37:41 PM 112,435,400
14 EMERALD NUTS/Human Dolphins 30 9:06:55 PM 112,143,360
15 NFL/NFL Draft 10 9:07:25 PM 112,143,360
16 DENNYS/Scared Chickens 30 9:20:50 PM 112,143,360
17 KIA/Gabba Gabba 60 8:52:15 PM 111,851,320
18 ROUNDUP/Two Jobs 15 8:53:15 PM 111,851,320
19 COCA-COLA/Sleepwalk Man 60 8:42:03 PM 111,559,280
20 E*TRADE/Milkaholic 30 8:43:03 PM 111,559,280
21 VIZIO/Beyonce 60 9:05:55 PM 111,559,280
22 BUD SELECT/Lightest Beer 15 8:53:30 PM 110,683,160
23 VOLKSWAGEN/Punches 30 8:29:56 PM 110,391,120
24 DENNYS/Egg Layers 30 8:30:26 PM 110,391,120
25 GOOGLE/Parisian Love 60 8:49:53 PM 110,391,120
26 NFL/Best Fans 60 8:56:52 PM 110,391,120
27 BRIDGESTONE/Man and Wife 30 8:39:49 PM 110,099,080
28 KGB/Sumo Wrestler 30 8:40:19 PM 110,099,080
29 MICHELOB ULTRA/Armstrong 30 8:38:49 PM 109,807,040
30 HOMEAWAY.COM/Chevy Chase 30 8:39:19 PM 109,807,040
31 WALT DISNEY STUDIOS/Prince of Persia 30 8:28:56 PM 109,515,000
32 MOTOROLA/Megan Fox 30 8:29:26 PM 109,515,000
33 DODGE/Charger 60 7:36:17 PM 108,930,920
34 WALT DISNEY STUDIOS/Alice in Wonderland 30 7:39:36 PM 108,930,920
35 INTEL/Hurt Robot 30 7:48:47 PM 108,930,920
36 TRUTV/Troy Polamalu 30 7:46:30 PM 108,638,880
37 DR PEPPER CHERRY/Kiss 30 7:40:06 PM 108,638,880
38 UNIVERSAL PARKS & RESORTS/Harry Potter 30 7:44:16 PM 108,638,880
39 MEDIAFLO/Spine Removed 30 7:46:01 PM 108,638,880
40 TELEFLORA/Florist 30 7:37:17 PM 108,346,840
41 PAPA JOHNS/Say Thanks 30 7:37:48 PM 108,054,800
42 BUD LIGHT/Castaways 45 7:25:52 PM 106,594,600
43 DOVE BODY WASH/Man’s Journey 45 7:26:37 PM 106,594,600
44 NFL/NFL Draft 30 7:27:03 PM 106,594,600
SUPER BOWL AVERAGE ** ** 106,500,000
45 BUDWEISER/Human Bridge 60 7:18:05 PM 105,718,480
46 CAREERBUILDER.COM/Casual Friday 30 7:21:15 PM 105,718,480
47 MEDIAFLO/Will.i.am 60 7:51:49 PM 105,426,440
48 PARAMOUNT PICTURES/Shutter island 30 7:19:05 PM 105,134,400
49 DOCKERS/Men Pants 30 7:21:45 PM 105,134,400
50 HYUNDAI/Brett Favre 30 7:22:15 PM 105,134,400
51 E*TRADE/Baby Bachelor Party 30 9:47:09 PM 104,550,320
52 CHEVROLET/Cars and Trucks 30 9:47:39 PM 104,550,320
53 CBS FILMS/Backup Plan 30 8:17:34 PM 102,214,000
54 DORITOS/Casket Chips 30 7:05:19 PM 101,921,960
55 BRIDGESTONE/Whale 30 7:08:16 PM 101,921,960
56 SKECHERS/Shape-Ups 15 7:08:46 PM 101,921,960
57 CARS.COM/Nervous Hero 60 7:09:01 PM 101,921,960
58 BUD LIGHT/Auto Tune 30 7:05:49 PM 101,629,920
59 MONSTER.COM/Beaver Fiddle 30 7:06:19 PM 101,629,920
60 UNIVERSAL PICTURES/Wolfman 15 7:06:49 PM 101,629,920
61 COCA-COLA/The Simpsons 60 7:02:10 PM 100,753,800
62 GO DADDY/Masseuse 30 7:03:10 PM 100,461,760
63 CAMPBELL SOUP/23 Soups 15 9:48:09 PM 97,249,320
64 PACE PICANTE SAUCE/Woman Cooks 15 9:48:24 PM 97,249,320
65 MEDIAFLO/Tough Drive 30 9:48:39 PM 97,249,320
66 UNIVERSAL PICTURES/Robin Hood 30 6:51:47 PM 96,373,200
67 DORITOS/Mom’s Date 30 6:52:17 PM 96,373,200
68 BUD LIGHT/Apocalypse Party 30 6:52:47 PM 96,373,200
69 DORITOS/Shock Collar 30 6:46:08 PM 94,036,880
70 BUD LIGHT/Beer House 30 6:42:16 PM 93,160,760
71 HYUNDAI/Meant to Last 30 6:45:08 PM 92,868,720
72 BOOST MOBILE/SB Shuffle 30 6:45:38 PM 92,868,720
73 SNICKERS/Betty White 30 6:42:46 PM 92,576,680
74 FOCUS ON THE FAMILY/Tim Tebow 30 6:43:16 PM 92,576,680
Source: The Nielsen Company

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