Over Two-Thirds of Americans Planning to Watch the Super Bowl

Around the nation, over two-thirds of Americans (69%) say they will be watching the game. Equal numbers say they will be hosting family and friends at their house (14%) and going to someone’s house (14%) for the game while 4% will watch at a bar or restaurant. Two in five (38%) say they know they will watch, but are just not sure of what their plans are yet.

These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,516 adults surveyed online between January 25 and 27, 2011 by Harris Interactive.

Commercials and the Halftime Show
While this is all about the game, there are other components to the day that have become just as important. The commercials are one major part of Super Bowl Sunday. Each year they are talked about, and the best and worst are debated. Almost nine in ten of those who plan to watch the game either are looking forward to watching the ads (59%) or, while they may not necessarily look forward to them, enjoy watching the ads (30%). In fact, only one in ten don’t pay any special attention to the ads (8%) or wish they didn’t have advertising during the Super Bowl (3%).

Then, there is the halftime show. Designed to be a spectacle that hopefully does not have any wardrobe malfunctions, it’s curious that the halftime entertainment is not as eagerly awaited as the commercials. Just one-third of those who are planning to watch the game (33%) look forward to the halftime show while one-quarter (27%) don’t look forward to it but enjoy it when it comes on. Three in ten (29%) of those planning to watch the game say they don’t pay any special attention to the halftime show and one in ten (10%) find it to be a distraction from the main event.