Americans pull back Super Bowl spending

American consumers are ready to celebrate the Super Bowl, but they don’t plan on spending as much as they did last year.



Consumers will spend an average of $75 for a total of $14.1 billion as an estimated 188.5 million watch the Atlanta Falcons face the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI on February 5, according to the National Retail Federation’s annual Super Bowl Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics.



The spending is down from an average of $82 and a total of $15.5 billion last year. Viewership remains about the same as last year’s 188.9 million.



Of the 76% of those surveyed who plan to watch the game, 80% say they will purchase food and beverages, 11% will buy team apparel or accessories, and 8% will splurge on new televisions to watch the game at home.



Bars and restaurants can also expect a good turnout with 12.4 million people planning to head out to watch at their favorite local spot, according to the survey.



Over 43% of viewers say the most important part is the game itself, 24% cite the commercials,15 percent want to hanging out with friends, and 12% of say the half-time show is their top highlight.



The survey also found that 78% of viewers watch the commercials for entertainment and 18% say they make them more aware of the advertiser’s brand, But only 10% say the commercials influence them to purchase products.



The survey, which asked 7,591 consumers about their Super Bowl plans, was conducted January 4 – 11, before it was known which teams would compete in the game.