'House of the Dragon' catches fire with big finale viewership

New York(CNN Business) "House of the Dragon" ended a strong first season for HBO with big ratings.

The "Game of Thrones" spinoff notched 9.3 million viewers for its first season finale on Sunday night. That is "the biggest finale night for an HBO series since the conclusion" of Thrones in May of 2019, according to the network. (HBO, like CNN, is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery.)

The finale's viewership is also impressive since the series — a prequel that takes place almost 200 years before the events of its predecessor and focuses on the Targaryen family — had a lot of competition for eyeballs on Sunday. That includes the NFL's "Sunday Night Football" game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins on NBC and Major League Baseball's ALCS playoff game between the Houston Astros and the New York Yankees on TBS.

The finale caps off a strong rookie season for the show. The series premiered to HBO records in August and is averaging 29 million viewers per episode across all US platforms, according to the network.

To put that number into context, season seven of "Game of Thrones" averaged 32.7 million viewers per episode, and season eight, its final season, averaged 46 million viewers.

All in all, HBO and Warner Bros. Discovery couldn't ask for a better first season to help kick off the "Game of Thrones" brand after three years of being away. Not to mention, win back some fans and critics who weren't happy with how the original series ended.

"House of the Dragon" has been renewed for a second season.