Although theSuper Bowl is consistently one of the most watched television programs in the United States annually,^[1] broadcasters have sometimes attempted to intentionallycounterprogram against it by running new programming against the game as an alternative, such as special episodes of existing series, one-off special presentations, and previews of new series, typically during itshalftime break.

The most prominent success of the concept came in 1992, whenFox broadcast a special, live edition of itssketch comedy programIn Living Color during halftime atSuper Bowl XXVI, taking advantage of the then-unpopular format of Super Bowl halftime shows. The special drew 22 million viewers, prompting theNFL to book more prominentpop music acts to perform at future Super Bowl halftime shows to compete.

Most broadcasters would typically airreruns of existing programming or sometimes asmarathons, prior to and during the game; in recent years, as all four major networks broadcast NFL games to an extent (all of them alternate airing the game yearly) the networks not airing the Super Bowl rarely broadcast new programming against it, to the point that the broadcast rights toSuper Bowl LV andLVI were traded to prevent a CBS-broadcast Super Bowl LVI from competing with the2022 Winter Olympics on NBC. Some cable channels and digital platforms still attempt to air original programming intended as an alternative to halftime or the game itself, such asAnimal Planet's annualPuppy Bowl special.

In the 1970s and 1980s, the majority of Super Bowl halftime shows were themed,musical spectacles that often featuredmarching bands and performance ensembles such asUp with People (who performed in fourSuper Bowl halftime shows between 1976 and 1986 and performed at the pre-game show ofSuper Bowl XXV in 1991). The group's halftime shows were described as being "wholesome" and "inoffensive" by critics, but were frequently derided for being dated and out of touch with modernpopular culture.^[2]

Super Bowl counterprogramming was first popularized byFox. As an alternative, the then-fledgling Fox network aired a special live episode of its popular sketch comedy showIn Living Color during halftime at the 1992Super Bowl XXVI (which featured a halftime show entitled "Winter Magic", aWinter Olympics-themed show starringGloria Estefan,Brian Boitano, andDorothy Hamill to tie into CBS's upcoming broadcast of the Games).^[3] The live episode featured football-themed sketches (such asMen on Football), a performance byColor Me Badd, and a clock counting down to the start of the third quarter.^[3] The episode was sponsored byFrito-Lay, who paid $2 million to hold all national advertising time, and to help budget and promote the special; the effort included a $1 million giveaway, whose winner was announced during the broadcast. A CBS executive felt that the concept was "cute", but dismissed concerns that the ambush would have any major impact on the viewership of the Super Bowl. The special drew more than 25 million viewers away from the Super Bowl;Nielsen estimated that CBS lost 10 ratings points and more than a fifth of its total viewership during halftime as a result of the special.^[4][5]

The unexpected success of theIn Living Color special prompted the NFL to heighten the halftime show's profile to help retain viewership; beginning atSuper Bowl XXVII in 1993, the NFL began to invite majorpop music performers to perform during the halftime show. The first of these, featuringMichael Jackson, led to a dramatic increase in viewership between halves—the first in the game's history. Later that year, Foxacquired rights to the NFL'sNational Football Conference (NFC), replacing CBS, beginning in the1994 season. The acquisition was a notable coup which helped to establish Fox's position as a major network in its own right, and also placed Fox in the broadcast rights rotation for the Super Bowl itself.^[6][7]

The NFL has continued to stay true to its goal of ensuring that the halftime show is as much of a spectacle as the game itself, which has complimented the absolute dominance of the Super Bowl in annual U.S. television viewership since it started holding the overall top ratings spot in1999. Besides a string of halftime shows from 2005 to 2010 that featured veteranrock acts in the wake of theSuper Bowl XXXVIII "wardrobe malfunction", the practice of inviting pop acts to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show has continued.^[4][8] TheSuper Bowl LIX halftime show featuringKendrick Lamar was seen by an estimated 133.5 million viewers, as part of an overall telecast that was themost-watched television broadcast in American history.

As all four major U.S. television networks currently have ties to the NFL and alternate airing the Super Bowl yearly,^[9][10] Phil Rosenthal of theChicago Tribune believed that there was now "zero likelihood some broadcast network is going to launch a broadside against the NFL's showcase.",^[4] while aGQ writer argued that the practice was now obsolete, due to the larger number of media options that have emerged since.^[3] As such, the networks not airing the game will typically air reruns of existing programs.^[4][11] Fox provided an exception in 2010, when it aired new episodes of'Til Death during the game; Fox had beenburning off thefourth season of the low-rated sitcom in unconventional time slots (such as having aired a marathon of four new episodes onChristmas Day), so its distributor would have enough episodes for syndication.^[12][13] The league's cable channelNFL Network also suspends programming during the game, instead airing a live scoreboard and a simulcast of the game's radio broadcast under the titleSuper Bowl Game Center.^[14]

Counterprogramming efforts are not limited to television; forSuper Bowl XLV in 2011,WCHK-FM, a station in theGreen Bay, Wisconsin area announced it would counterprogram the game withdead air, since the hometownPackers were in the game. However, its goal was not to attract listeners from the game, but to do the opposite.^[15] The freeform programAnything Anything with Rich Russo has counterprogrammed the Super Bowl withDr. Demento.^[16]

Counterprogramming has also expanded to the internet; Jewish radio personalityNachum Segal has organized an annualKosher Halftime Show for streaming via his Nachum Segal Network, featuring performances byJewish musicians. The special was recorded in Atlanta for 2019, marking the first time it was held in the Super Bowl's host city.^[17] In 2015,YouTube streamed an alternative, online halftime show featuring notable personalities from the video sharing service.^[18] In 2019, theSuper Smash Bros.video game tournamentGenesis 6 had top-8 rounds overlapping withSuper Bowl LIII, whichShacknews noted were either "intentional or completely by accident".^[19]

For the first time in the history of the game,Super Bowl LVI in 2022 fell during an ongoingWinter Olympics, the2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. In order to prevent the possibility thatNBC would have to counterprogram CBS's telecast of the game with primetime coverage of these Olympics (which would dilute viewership and advertising sales), NBC agreed to trade 2021'sSuper Bowl LV to CBS in favor of Super Bowl LVI—thus giving NBC rights to both the 2022 Winter Olympics and Super Bowl LVI.^[20][21] NBC thus suspended its coverage of the Olympics in favor of pre-game coverage for the Super Bowl (and moved its daytime coverage that day to air in the morning before the pre-game coverage began), before resuming with primetime coverage as its lead-out.^[22][23] CBS, its sister premium channelShowtime, andHBO, did air new episodes ofCelebrity Big Brother (which averaged five episodes per-week),Billions, andEuphoria respectively on the night of the game; HBO announced thatEuphoria had achieved a series high of 5.1 million viewers, although this included live and on-demand viewership across HBO and its streaming serviceHBO Max.^[24]

The Winter Olympics scenario from Super Bowl LVI was codified by the addition of ABC/ESPN as a fourth Super Bowl broadcaster under the current NFL media rights that began in 2023; NBC televises Super Bowl games held in Winter Olympic years over the course of the agreement.^[25]

Recurring Super Bowl counters have includedAnimal Planet's annualPuppy Bowl, a special featuring dogs at play in a model football stadium (which itself spawned imitators—theKitten Bowl andFish Bowl, in 2014),^[26][27] and theLingerie Bowl, a series ofpay-per-view broadcasts of all-female football games played inlingerie, proving popular enough to be expanded into its ownLingerie Football League with the Lingerie Bowl as its championship game. The LFL was later re-launched as a conventional women's football league, the Legends Football League, and moved its season to run during the NFL off-season instead.^[28]

During the 1990s,MTV was a recurring provider of counterprogramming, having scheduled new episodes ofBeavis and Butt-head against the halftime show on multiple occasions. In 1998, MTV aired apilot episode for a new stop-motion animated series,Celebrity Deathmatch. In the spirit of the Super Bowl airings, its official premiere in May 1998 was scheduled to air on the same night asthe series finale ofSeinfeld.^{[29][30][31][32]}

On several occasions, theprofessional wrestling promotionWWF (now WWE) broadcast special halftime editions of its Sunday-night program onUSA Network at the time,Sunday Night Heat, dubbedHalftime Heat. The concept was revived for Super Bowl LIII by WWE'sNXT brand as a streaming special onWWE Network and other platforms, featuring the premiere of a 6-man tag-team match at halftime, as well as a marathon of classic NXT matches.^[33][34]

On the day of the Super Bowl,cable channels often air special, and sometimes themedmarathons ofexisting programming prior to and/or during the game, such asCartoon Network having aired a marathon of2 Stupid Dogs that it dubbed the "Stupid Bowl",^[32]DIY Network broadcasting a marathon of bathroom-related programming known as the "Toilet Bowl",^[35] a "Poppy Bowl" marathon ofDr. Pimple Popper onTLC that additionally featured behind-the-scenes content and updates on featured patients,^[36][37] and duringSuper Bowl XLV, Canadian networkGlobal airing a marathon ofGlee, andGlee-themed episodes ofThe Simpsons ("Elementary School Musical") andThe Office ("Viewing Party") as a lead-in for "The Sue Sylvester Shuffle"after the game (competing networkCTV is the Canadian rightsholder of the NFL and Super Bowl, but notGlee).^[38]

In 2025, theconservative political organizationTurning Point USA announced its intent to counterprogram theSuper Bowl LX halftime show in February 2026 with its own "All-American Halftime Show." This is the first major attempt at counterprogramming the event for sociopolitical reasons, as the selection ofBad Bunny—a Puerto Rican rapper who primarily performs inSpanish—as the headliner of theSuper Bowl LX halftime show was criticized by some conservative pundits and presidentDonald Trump. The lineup was revealed in February 2026, headlined byKid Rock, withLee Brice,Brantley Gilbert andGabby Barrett, and would be broadcast by conservative-leaning outlets includingSinclair Broadcast GroupsCharge! andThe National News Desk,Trinity Broadcasting Network,Real America's Voice,One America News Network, andNTD America.^[39]

• Counterprogramming (film distribution)
• List of Super Bowl commercials

• Lists of American television series
• Super Bowl halftime shows
• Super Bowl lists
• Super Bowl-related television programming

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from January 2014