The Super Bowl is going to be must-see TV no matter what, but there are some matchups that might draw more eyes than others.
In fact, we're going to take a look at a handful of potential Super Bowl matchups for the 2026 season that would absolutely draw more eyes than others. The fact of the matter is, some teams are just more interesting than others. Whether they've become villains of the NFL or they just have more star power than the rest of the league, there are plenty of teams fans from across the globe would rather tune in to see than others.
What five matchups could break the all-time record set by the Eagles and Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX of 127.7 million viewers?
In the interest of variety, we're going to only use each team once in this exercise.
5 Super Bowl LXI matchups that could set TV viewer records
5. Dallas Cowboys vs. Houston Texans
This matchup would certainly set records in the state of Texas, and you could argue that the Dallas Cowboys making it this far in the first place would cause viewership in the Super Bowl to dramatically increase.
There is a reason why the Cowboys are constantly in the spotlight for the NFL. Whether people love the Cowboys or love to hate the Cowboys, most football fans seem to fall somewhere on one end of the extreme.
Dallas has a good enough offense to contend for a spot in the Super Bowl, but the question will be their defense under new coordinator Christian Parker.
The defense is not a question mark for the Houston Texans, who have arguably the best defense in the league right now. And as scary as the Texans' defense was in 2025, they got even better in 2026. It's going to be fun to see if that team can continue to take steps forward under head coach DeMeco Ryans.
While Houston isn't the most "popular" team in the NFL, they represent over one-third of the league which has yet to win a Super Bowl at all. Having one of the NFL's top legacy franchises and one of its most polarizing teams in the Cowboys facing off against a Texans team trying to win its first-ever title would make for huge ratings.
4. Detroit Lions vs. Cincinnati Bengals
This matchup would have the potential to be the highest-scoring Super Bowl we've had in recent memory.
The Detroit Lions and Cincinnati Bengals are two teams who just missed out on the playoffs last season, but two teams that have been on the cusp of winning it all in recent years.
This matchup features star power on the offensive side of the ball and two of the best quarterbacks in the league. It also features two teams that have never won the Super Bowl before, adding even more intrigue for fans.
Having a matchup where the winner is guaranteed to be a first-time Super Bowl champion gives fans from 30 other fan bases a reason to take some sort of rooting interest.
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