Sports TV ratings, etc. Random sports talk

IanMcVittie said:
The Vegas Golden Knights just paid 500 million for their franchises and the yet unnamed Seattle expansion franchise will pay 650 million.

For a niche sport the NHL does well but not so much for Nascar. I will say the NHL has good product.
Click to expand...
great, why waste time here, after three different identities, one would think one could take the hint. Go follow the crowd.
 
StandOnIt said:
great, why waste time here, after three different identities, one would think one could take the hint. Go follow the crowd.
Click to expand...

I like it here and I also like niche sports. The NHL is doing well but Nascar is floundering.
 
This should be qualified by the face that the Final Four and NCG were on CBS this year, on the CBS/TBS rotation. Still, it was up prior to the Final Four and that NCG is solid for an 'unsexy' matchup between two defensive-minded teams who hadn't been to the championship ever.

 


I agree with the sentiment here, even though I'm not a drag racing enthusiast. Many other forms of racing with smaller audiences receive far more media attention.
 
Very interested to see how this unfolds. Unlike the disastrous NBA ratings so far, the NHL had a monumental first round. Only problem with that is almost all the big names and markets are out of the playoffs now - how will that affect the final three rounds? The opening night of round 2, at least, was also big.

On the other hand, with most of the NBA first round being straightforward affairs, I am expecting some substantial increases the rest of the way. Lots of great potential matchups between big markets and superstars.



 
Viewership of the first round of the NFL Draft was down just a tick from last year, but still pulled in an impressive 11.1 million viewers across the three networks that televised it (ABC, ESPN, and NFL Network). Rounds 2 and 3 were up over last year however, as 5.7 million viewers tuned in for those two rounds on Friday Night, a record for Day 2 of the Draft.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ho...ory-tv-ratings-thursday-april-25-2019-1204996

https://www.sportsmediawatch.com/2019/04/nfl-draft-ratings-warriors-clippers-nhl/
 
NBA local ratings dip
https://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2019/04/29/Media/NBA-ratings.aspx

Huge drops in two of the NBA’s three biggest television markets contributed to an overall 4 percent decline in the league’s local ratings this season.

The New York Knicks (down 38 percent on MSG) and Chicago Bulls (down 24 percent on NBC Sports Chicago) had two of the four biggest local TV ratings decreases this season. The Bulls’ 1.36 rating is the team’s lowest in 13 years.

Not surprisingly, the biggest ratings decline came in Cleveland where the departure of LeBron James from the Cavaliers caused Fox Sports Ohio ratings to drop 58 percent. Conversely, James’ new team, the Los Angeles Lakers, posted a 31 percent ratings increase on Spectrum SportsNet — the team’s highest since 2013.

Sports Business Journal analyzed regular-season ratings data for 28 U.S.-based NBA teams. Overall, 15 teams posted local ratings gains during the regular season, 12 saw decreases and one remained unchanged. Information for Memphis and Toronto was not available.

On a national level for the regular season, the NBA saw a drop in viewership as well, with James’ move out West, his subsequent injury and some decline in interest around the Golden State Warriors contributing to the drop. Game telecasts across ABC, ESPN, TNT and NBA TV in 2018-19 (1.2 million average viewers) were down 5 percent from last season, which was the best audience since the 2013-14 season. NBA games this season were still up 3 percent from two seasons ago. Individually, each network saw a drop for 2018-19.

The regular-season decline spilled into the first two weekends of the NBA playoffs. The audience for telecasts across TNT, ABC, ESPN and NBA TV — 2.66 million viewers — was the lowest figure since at least 2011, when NBA TV numbers were first publicly available. Playoff games were down 18 percent compared with the same point last season. The absence of James in the postseason affected the numbers, as did head-to-head competition with the Masters on the opening weekend of the playoffs.

The defending NBA champion Warriors had the league’s highest local rating, posting a 7.42 on NBC Sports Bay Area. Still, this year’s rating was down 11 percent, suggesting that “Warriors fatigue” could be affecting the team’s ratings. This marked the third consecutive season that the Warriors’ local ratings declined. The team has led the league in local ratings for each of those three seasons.

Nationally, TNT carried 12 regular-season Warriors games, averaging 1.9 million viewers, which was down 25 percent from last season (also 12 games) and down 28 percent from two seasons ago (10 games). But on ESPN, the 13 Warriors games (2.04 million viewers) were up 1 percent from a season ago, but down 6 percent from two seasons ago.

The biggest local ratings increase came in Dallas where the Mavericks saw an 88 percent jump on Fox Sports Southwest, fueled by the emerging stardom of Luka Doncic and the final season of future hall of famer Dirk Nowitzki.

The on-court success of the Nuggets drove a 74 percent ratings gain on Denver’s Altitude Sports, the second-highest increase.

The Milwaukee Bucks, (a 3.1 rating), Philadelphia 76ers (2.7) and Utah Jazz (6.6) each delivered their highest ratings dating to 2003.

The lowest ratings came in Brooklyn where the playoff-bound Nets drew a 0.46 rating on YES Network. The good news for the Nets is that despite the league-low numbers, regular-season ratings increased by 22 percent.
Click to expand...

ePmx4SN.png

7dTjnnE.png
 
Sabres see spike in NHL local ratings
https://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2019/04/29/Media/NHL-ratings.aspx

For the third time in four years, the Buffalo Sabres are back on top of the NHL’s local TV ratings chart. Despite missing the playoffs for the eighth straight season, the Sabres posted an astounding 75 percent ratings increase on MSG to finish with an 8.13 average.

The Sabres’ mark easily outdistanced Penguins games on AT&T Pittsburgh, which averaged a 6.38 rating, up 10 percent from last season. The Sabres and Penguins have posted the two biggest local ratings in each of the past 10 years. The Penguins’ local TV ratings have been tops for seven of those years.

Overall, NHL local TV ratings were essentially flat this season, dropping a combined 1 percent. Sports Business Journal analyzed ratings data from 22 of the NHL’s 24 U.S.-based clubs; information for Carolina and Nashville was not available. Overall, 12 teams posted ratings increases; 10 were down.

Nationally, viewership for the NHL regular season across cable, broadcast and digital platforms bounced back 2 percent after NBC Sports last season had its lowest audience under the current media rights deal.

The best local TV story was in Las Vegas where the Golden Knights posted a 116 percent increase on AT&T Rocky Mountain for their second season. The team’s games averaged a 4.05 rating — the third highest in the league.

Other playoff teams saw significant jumps. The Colorado Avalanche, which made the playoffs for the second straight year, had a 49 percent increase on Altitude. The New York Islanders, who had the league’s fifth-best record, saw their ratings increase 41 percent on MSG+. That ratings gain followed a 21 percent increase the previous year.

The New Jersey Devils finished with the league’s third-worst record and posted the biggest percentage decline and lowest rating. Devils games on MSG+ fell 59 percent. The team’s 0.24 rating was the league’s lowest.

The Los Angeles Kings saw a similar drop-off — both on the ice and on TV. Kings games on FS West dropped 35 percent — the league’s second-largest decline — and the team’s average 0.35 rating is the league’s fourth worst.
Click to expand...
KcuYGiy.png

UiKnI0R.png
 
I only barely follow the NHL, so are there any leading theories as to why the viewership is trending up? It seems like NBC has gone all in with strong promotion.
 
gnomesayin said:
I only barely follow the NHL, so are there any leading theories as to why the viewership is trending up? It seems like NBC has gone all in with strong promotion.
Click to expand...
A combination of major upsets, a lot of overtime, markets like Denver/Raleigh/Columbus are setting local ratings records while St. Louis and Boston types are interestingly delivering higher local ratings than in previous playoff appearances. Not sure any one thing can be pinpointed but pretty much night-in and night-out the product is delivering, even to the casual viewer. Not sure how long it will sustain for though - I can't imagine a conference final like Carolina/Columbus would be very sexy for TV, or a Stanley Cup matchup like either of those against a Colorado or San Jose. The way things are shaping up that could certainly happen, though.
 
FLRacingFan said:
A combination of major upsets, a lot of overtime, markets like Denver/Raleigh/Columbus are setting local ratings records while St. Louis and Boston types are interestingly delivering higher local ratings than in previous playoff appearances. Not sure any one thing can be pinpointed but pretty much night-in and night-out the product is delivering, even to the casual viewer. Not sure how long it will sustain for though - I can't imagine a conference final like Carolina/Columbus would be very sexy for TV, or a Stanley Cup matchup like either of those against a Colorado or San Jose. The way things are shaping up that could certainly happen, though.
Click to expand...
Everyone I know is watching hockey now because of the Raleigh team. North Carolina is the greatest sports bandwagon state... they go all the way in when a Carolina team goes to the playoffs.

So yeah, there are probably over a half million in this state who have never watched hockey before watching in this state alone.
 
Something I've found interesting through the playoffs so far, Bruins games have been pulling higher ratings in Boston than Celtics games.





 




Given this info, I wonder if we could see an audience over 10M for Game 7 on Wednesday. From what I can tell, only 1972 Bruins/Rangers Game 6 (10.93M) and 1971 Canadiens/Blackhawks Game 7 (12.41M) have managed to surpass that mark in NHL history.
 
It amuses me how much these sports media journalists and sites are claiming doom & gloom because there was a Canadian team that effects everything, yet they probably had a huge global/international/North American audience.
 
AuzGrams said:
It amuses me how much these sports media journalists and sites are claiming doom & gloom because there was a Canadian team that effects everything, yet they probably had a huge global/international/North American audience.
Click to expand...
I don't care much for the always misleading "watched part of" statistic, but on average it was a good showing in Canada.



 
Sounds like UConn is moving Olympic sports back to the Big East, and probably moving football to C-USA, the MAC, or independence. Somewhat bittersweet but I think this is the best move for both UConn and the AAC.
 
The Rays owner is now saying he wants two new stadiums - one each in TB and in Montreal. Also claims the Rays are sustainable in TB as a full-time team because of lack of corporate support in the area - even though the Bucs and Lightning are kind of a thing. Good riddance, a**hole.



 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom