Army-Navy delivers CBS its most-watched game of the season

In a standalone window, Army-Navy proved once again to be a ratings boon for CBS.

The game averaged 7.84 million viewers on CBS, becoming the most-watched game on the network this season. Second place was Indiana-Oregon in Week 6, which averaged 5.59 million viewers.

Army-Navy was down 17% from a record 9.4 million viewers in 2024, but was up from 2023 and was the second most-watched edition of the game since 2018. Army-Navy has aired on CBS since 1996.

Overall, Big Ten games on CBS were up 2% year-over-year, from 3.63 million viewers to 3.71 million viewers. But viewership for college football on CBS is actually down slightly when adding the handful of Mountain West and service academy games CBS also airs. All told, average viewership is down 3% from last season, from 3.13 million to 3.05 million.

Viewership changes from last year may be impacted by Nielsen’s shift to its new Big Data standard in September. The change from the old panel-based standard adds new viewership metrics from cable and satellite set-top boxes, as well as smart TVs, and generally results in increased viewership.

The ratings news comes as CBS, Army, and Navy are reportedly beginning discussions about moving the game if the College Football Playoff expands. Army-Navy moved to a standalone window in 2009. That change, according to Sports Media Watch, resulted in roughly two million more viewers for the game from 2008 to 2009.

For CBS, the game clearly is meaningful, especially because its decision to put the Big Ten in the 3:30 p.m. ET slot has not exactly worked out. CBS recently extended its contract to air Army-Navy through 2038. If this viewership is any indication, CBS will likely work hard to keep the game in its own time slot.