22.1 million spectators at CFP national championship game in 2025 sets new non-NFL sporting event record

The 2025 CFP national championship game was the inaugural year of the 12-team College Football Playoff format. After a rigorous fight to the end, the Ohio State Buckeyes emerged as the natty victors following a 34-23 victory over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

The 2025 CFP national championship took place on January 20 at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. With this victory, the Buckeyes won their first national championship since 2014. However, the high-octane finale of the 2024 season also set a new sports event record.

According to the College Football Playoff, the national championship was watched by 22.1 million viewers. This made it the most-watched non-NFL sporting event in the past year.

Despite this achievement, ESPN reported that the Ohio State vs Notre Dame natty final saw a significant 12% dip in viewership. Last year, the 2023 showdown between the Michigan Wolverines and the Washington Huskies managed to reel in 25 million viewers.

This season's CFP national championship finale saw its viewership peak in the second quarter when the score was tied 7-7. A total of 26.1 million had tuned in at that time to witness the events unfolding at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Georgia.

The first round of the 12-team CFP format saw an average viewership of 10.6 million. The quarterfinals averaged a total of 16.9 million viewers and the semifinals averaged 19.2 million which was still a 17% decline from the 2023 season.

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CFB analyst shares harsh reality with Ohio State HC Ryan Day after CFP national championship victory

Despite winning the natty, there is still one thing that Ohio State fans are unhappy about. And that is their fourth consecutive loss to Michigan in the 2024 season. CFB analyst Ben Maller reminded coach Ryan Day about this challenge that he still has to overcome next season.

Despite leading the Buckeyes to their first CFP national championship title since 2014, Maller believes that Day still has red on his ledger. And the only way to remove that stain is by breaking the Wolverines' winning streak in this rivalry next season. Maller said (via Fox Sports Radio):

"What does this win do for the much-maligned Ohio State football coach Ryan Day? What does this victory do? So Day, we all know this ... we talked about it after the Michigan game ... that he had a, we call it, a toasty tushy. He had a toasty tushy after that game, so this win is a nice fire extinguisher on the old hot seat for now.

"So this is lik a pardon, but it's a temporary pardon... until the Buckeyes lose to the Wolverines again coming up in late 2025, and then we can get the laser printer and we're back to square one."

It will be interesting to see how Ryan Day faces the Michigan Wolverines next season. Can they finally end their losing streak in the same fashion they defeated Notre Dame to lift the natty this year?