Sunday (night through to Monday morning for viewers watching in the UK) saw the New York Giants take on the New England Patriots for Super Bowl XLVI, and broke the record for the most watched television show in US history.

The game, which saw New York Giants score their winning touchdown with fifty-seven seconds left of play, was watched by a record breaking 111.3million viewers on American broadcast channel, NBC.

As well as achieving this amazing landmark viewing figure, which only just beat last years record, the game – which included a spectacular halftime performance by Madonna – also scored 47.0 overnight rating and a 71% audience share, making it the highest rating Super Bowl since 1983.

The event, the biggest in the US sporting calendar, was followed by the second series premier of The Voice, which scooped from the remaining viewers a staggering 37.7million, with a 16.3 adults 19-49 demo rating at 10.30pm, awarding it the highest rating entertainment programme since Grey’s Anatomy Super Bowl follow on in 2006.

In preparation for the huge event, other networks all ran repeat programming to avoid clashing with the Super Bowl, except CBS’s 60 Minutes, which aired at 8pm and brought in a meagre 4.01million viewers in comparison.

The Super Bowl occupies four of the top five most-watched TV programme in US history spots on the  record board, with Sunday’s game knocking the year before off the top spot.  The only non-football entry comes from military eighties  Vietnam war drama,  M*A*S*H, who’s  series finale ranks at number four, having raked in 106million viewers in 1983.

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