Exclusive Details on CBS and Paramount+’s Upcoming Broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII
This year’s Super Bowl will be broadcast on CBS, which means it will also be available to stream live on Paramount+!
The Super Bowl is, year in and year out, the top ratings driver of any live TV event. Across all available platforms, Super Bowl LV after the COVID-affected 2020 NFL season was the only edition of the big game since 2009 not to draw more than 100 million viewers. Most fans have no conception of what goes on to make a Super Bowl broadcast possible, but given that this year’s game will have a heavy streaming presence, The Streamable has collected a number of exclusive details about CBS and Paramount+’s Feb. 11, 2024 broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII.
- CBS will offer Super Bowl LVIII in 2024, which means the big game will also be available to stream on Paramount+.
- This will be the second time Paramount Global has offered a Super Bowl via streaming.
- The Streamable has exclusive details on how and when to stream the big game, including whether you’ll be able to watch in 4K, and more.
What Was the Last Paramount Super Bowl Streaming Experience Like?
The last time Paramount was the broadcaster for a Super Bowl was in February 2021. The game was between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs, and the COVID-19 pandemic forced ratings for the game to their lowest point in years; across all platforms, the game brought in 99.7 million viewers, including 5.7 million users who streamed the game on various services like CBS All Access and live TV platforms.
CBS All Access was rebranded as Paramount+ just a few weeks after that Super Bowl, so this is technically the first time that users will be able to watch the big game on the company’s current flagship streaming service. It’s a big opportunity for Paramount to put its best foot forward and lure new customers to the streamer, where they’ll be able to watch shows like “Lawmen: Bass Reeves,” “NCIS: Sydney” and much more.
What Are the Details of Paramount+’s Super Bowl LVIII Presentation?
As the NFL Playoffs are just getting underway on Saturday, Jan. 13, we are still a few weeks away from figuring out which teams will be playing in Super Bow LVIII, but Paramount has provided The Streamable with plenty of details about how football fans will be able to stream the biggest game of the year. First, viewers will be happy to know that the game will be available on both Paramount+ tiers; either the ad-supported Paramount+ Essential plan for $5.99 per month, or the ad-free Paramount+ with SHOWTIME plan that is available for $11.99 per month.
Customers who don’t have a Paramount+ subscription yet will have to sign up for the service if they want to watch via the Paramount+ interface. There won’t be any way to stream the game for free without an active subscription. However, customers who have never subscribed to Paramount+ before can get a 30-day free trial to either plan of the service using promo code CHALLENGE39.
As with all streaming services, customers who watch the game on Paramount+ will notice a delay of a few seconds between the stream and the live broadcast on CBS, the company confirmed to The Streamable. Media companies are working hard to reduce delays between live action on the field and when users see it on their favorite streaming service, but none has managed to align streaming fully with live broadcasts as of yet.
Paramount has also confirmed Super Bowl LVIII will not be available to stream on Paramount+ outside the United States, even for American-based subscribers who are traveling. The good news is that fans watching domestically can join the stream at any time, but will not be able to rewind or pause the game on Paramount+.
Will Super Bowl LVIII Be Available to Stream in 4K on Paramount+?
Ultra-High-Definition 4K offers a screen resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 pixels, which is four times the pixel count of standard 1080p high-definition screens. That means that 4K offers stunning detail, color and light contrasts, a vibrant picture, and it’s the top way to watch live sporting events like the Super Bowl.
Just this week, CBS announced that it would offer a 4K feed of the Super Bowl for the first time in its history. The feed will be available through multiple linear cable and satellite providers, as well as live TV streaming services, but what about on Paramount+?
Because users on the Paramount+ with SHOWTIME tier can watch select on-demand content in 4K, users will be able to stream it with that plan on Paramount+ in The Streamable’s expert opinion. However, that functionality has not yet been confirmed, as a Paramount spokesperson was unable to provide additional insight into CBS’s 4K announcement when The Streamable asked if 4K would be available on Paramount+.
Are Any Alternate Broadcasts Available for Super Bowl LVIII on Paramount+?
Alternate broadcasts of NFL games first gained widespread popularity when Peyton and Eli Manning offered their first “Monday Night Football” alternate telecast in September 2021. Since then, the so-called “ManningCast” has become a staple of “MNF” broadcasts, featuring hilarious commentary from the Manning brothers and special celebrity guests.
This season, Nickelodeon will offer a “SpongeBob SquarePants“-themed broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII. SpongeBob and Patrick will join CBS Sports analyst Nate Burleson and play-by-play announcer Noah Eagle in the booth, while Sandy, Larry the Lobster, Dora the Explorer, and Boots will throw in their contributions from the sideline and the review booth.
Sadly for Paramount+ subscribers, the “SpongeBob” broadcast will be a Nickelodeon exclusive. A Paramount spokesperson confirmed to The Streamable that SpongeBob and his friends will only be available on the linear channel itself and that the alternate telecast of Super Bowl LVIII will not be offered on Paramount+.
Will Paramount+ Be Able to Improve Streaming Ratings for the Super Bowl?
A quick glance at past Super Bowl streaming ratings indicates that more and more users have been watching the game via streaming devices each year. Since 2015 — the first NFL season whose Super Bowl drew more than 1 million streaming viewers — the amount of users who watched the big game via a streaming source has grown steadily, as the following chart using data compiled by The Streamable from Sports Media Watch shows.
| NFL Year | Matchup | Total Viewers | Streaming Devices |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | Denver Broncos vs. Carolina Panthers | 113.7M | 1.4M |
| 2016-17 | New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons | 113.7M | 1.7M |
| 2017-18 | Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots | 118.2M | 2.0M |
| 2018-19 | New England Patriots vs. Los Angeles Rams | 112.7M | 2.6M |
| 2019-20 | Kansas City Chiefs vs. San Francisco 49ers | 113.4M | 3.4M |
| 2020-21 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Kansas City Chiefs | 99.7M | 5.7M |
| 2021-22 | Cincinnati Bengals vs. Los Angeles Rams | 112.3M | 6.0M |
| 2022-23 | Philadelphia Eagles vs. Kansas City Chiefs | 115.1M | 7.0M |
It should be noted that streaming ratings have heretofore not been measured by Nielsen, and are tracked by device instead of by individual viewers. However, the numbers make clear that users are more and more willing to adopt streaming as a method for watching the big game. Last year’s Super Bowl saw a leap of 1 million streaming devices being used to watch the Super Bowl, despite the fact that the game was on Fox, and therefore was not offered on a dedicated on-demand streamer like Paramount+. Fox does not have a subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) streaming service in the style of Paramount+, so last year’s streaming audience came exclusively from live TV streaming services and Fox branded apps.
That should give Paramount hope that it can continue the trend of improving streaming ratings. The company has not been shy about advertising the game’s presence on Paramount+, as its recent ad campaign featuring former NFL quarterback and current CBS analyst Matt Ryan makes plain. Paramount+ also hosted a promotion that will see 58 tickets to the big game given away for free; the contest ended on Jan. 8.
All signs currently point to a successful Super Bowl LVIII experience for CBS and Paramount+. Paramount’s future may be a bit clouded at the moment, but it seems clear the company has gone to a great deal of trouble to ensure its broadcast of this year’s Super Bowl goes off without a hitch, both on linear CBS and on Paramount+.
Paramount Plus
Paramount+ is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 40,000+ TV show episodes from BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. and more. The lineup includes “1883,” “Tulsa King,” “Star Trek: Discovery,” Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “PAW Patrol.” Subscribers can watch the NFL, college football, The Masters, college basketball, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa, Serie A, and NWSL. The service also offers the option to watch your live CBS affiliate. The upgraded ad-free package includes premium movies and shows from Showtime.