The 'Game of Thrones' finale was HBO's most-watched episode of all time — even before counting piracy

HBO's “Game of Thrones” aired its final episode on Sunday.The series broke a record set by “The Sopranos” to become the most-watched telecast in HBO's history.Overall, 19.3 million viewers watched across HBO's TV and digital platforms, beating the series' previous best.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.Critics may have been disappointed in the way things wrapped up in Westeros on Sunday, but a record-setting number of viewers still tuned in to watch “Game of Thrones” come to its divisive end.An estimated 13.6 million viewers watched the 9 p.m. airing of the final episode of “Game of Thrones,” according to Nielsen data released by HBO. It was the most-watched single telecast in HBO's history, edging out the fourth season premiere of the network's original flagship drama “The Sopranos” in 2002, with 13.4 million viewers.But that doesn't take into account the rise in streaming viewing between 2002 and now.Overall, 19.3 million viewers watched the “Game of Thrones” finale across HBO's platforms, including its TV channels, its HBO Go service for pay-TV customers, and its HBO Now subscription service. The episode bested the previous week's series high of 18.4 million viewers.And these are just the viewers HBO counted. The figures don't include viewers who may have watched the episode through less-than-legal means, such as pirated streams and downloads.The season premiere of the final season of “Game of Thrones” was pirated 54 million times globally in its first 24 hours in April, Business Insider previously reported, citing data from Muso, a company that tracks digital piracy analytics. It was most pirated in places like India and China, according to the data.Given the enormous live viewership of the “Game of Thrones” finale, the series may have set more than one record on Sunday.