Ratings Roundup: NBA Opening Night Hits All Time Viewership in 11 Years; MLB Post-Season In 8

By SVG Staff
Friday, October 27, 2023 - 11:01 am
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Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press releases and reports around the industry. In this week’s edition, ESPN finishes the fiscal year with best viewership since 2019; Monday Night Football generates more than 18 million viewers, and more.

Most-Watched ESPN NBA Opening Night in 11 Years and Second-Most Watched Ever

ESPN had its most-watched NBA opening night in 11 years and its second-most watched opening night ever, according to Nielsen. Viewership for the season-opening doubleheader was up 80 percent from last year. The first two games of the season on ESPN generated an average audience of 2,756,000 viewers, up from 1,532,000 viewers in 2022.

The Boston Celtics victory over the New York Knicks averaged 2,552,000 viewers, peaking with 4,351,000 viewers at 9:45 p.m. ET. It was the most-watched ESPN season-opening early game since 2012 and up 76 percent from last year’s early game (New York Knicks vs. Memphis Grizzlies).

The nightcap, which featured the debut of Victor Wembanyama, averaged nearly three million viewers (2,989,000) as the Dallas Mavericks defeated the San Antonio Spurs. It peaked with 3,903,000 viewers at 10 p.m. ET. It was up 83 percent vs last year’s comparable game (Dallas Mavericks vs. Phoenix Suns) and is the most-watched season-opening ESPN late game since 2012. Excluding Christmas Day, it is the most-watched San Antonio Spurs or Dallas Mavericks regular season game ever on ESPN.

The NBA on ESPN was the most-watched primetime programming across all of television – broadcast and cable – for October 25 amongst people under 50, adults 18-34, adults 25-54, males 18-34, males 18-49 and males 25-54.

TBS Delivers Network’s Most Watched MLB Postseason Game in Eight Years

TBS’ exclusive coverage of the 2023 NLCS presented by loanDepot, Game 7 delivered the most-watched MLB Postseason game on the network in eight years, with 9.1 million total viewers* across TBS, truTV and Max tuning in to watch the Arizona Diamondbacks capture the National League pennant and punch their ticket to the World Series.

The telecast is also the seventh most-watched baseball program to ever air on TBS.

The Diamondbacks’ 4-2 victory over the Phillies is the highest rated LCS game in the Philadelphia market in 13 years, and the highest rated LCS game in the Phoenix market in 16 years.

Viewership for the seven-game NLCS series finished up 17% vs. the 2022 NLCS (4.7 million, Philadelphia Phillies vs. San Diego Padres, 5 games) and up 5% over the 2022 ALCS on TBS (5.2 million viewers, Houston Astros vs. New York Yankees, 4 games).

Overall, TBS’ coverage of the 2023 MLB Postseason — including National League Division Series and Championship Series coverage — averaged 4.6 million viewers, up 8% compared to the network’s 2022 MLB Postseason coverage.

This includes strong year-over-year audience growth among key demos, driven in part by simulcast streaming on Max: up 13% in P18-34, up 14% in P18-49, and up 13% in P25-54.

NHL Frozen Frenzy Debuted with Impressive Viewership

First-ever NHL Frozen French tripleheader on ESPN (TOR-WSH, BOS-CHI, PHI-VGK) averaged 432K total viewers and 195K P18-49 viewers, up 11% and 10% vs. last season’s NHL on ESPN average
- TOR-WSH is the most-watched regular season game featuring a Canadian team on cable since 2017
NHL Frozen Frenzy whip-around show on ESPN2 averaged 196K total viewers and 113K P18-49
- 57% of audience from P18-49 demo, 12 points higher than last season’s NHL on ESPN average
Audience peak 918K viewers across two networks during 9:15 pm ET quarter hour
NHL on ESPN is averaging 616K total viewers and 294K P18-49 viewers, up 26% and 29% vs.the same point last season

ESPN Finishes 2023 Fiscal Year with Network’s Best Overall Viewership Since 2019 Fiscal Year; Key Demo Persons 18-49 Also Best Since Fiscal Year 2019

ESPN’s 2022-23 fiscal year (October – September) saw the network deliver its best overall viewership in four years (2018-19 fiscal year) and its highest viewership in the key persons 18-49 demo in the same time period. In both overall and persons 18-49, ESPN was up in each of the four quarters as well, maintaining steady success throughout the entire year. The linear success is one arm of the company’s fiscal year success, as ESPN+ and ESPN Digital each saw double digit percentage growth in key categories and ESPN Social saw a remarkable 25% growth in engagements.

ESPN’s total day audience was up 2% for the fiscal year, with each quarter up 1%, 4%, 4%, and 2%, respectively. The network averaged 721,000 viewers throughout the year, with nearly 40% of the audience in persons 18-49 demo. That same key sales demo is up 5% for the year, with each quarter up 4%, 5%, 7% and 3%.

Additional TV Success:

ESPN maintained its historical position as the No. 1 sports network (average audience) and this year No. 3 on cable, trailing two news networks.
ESPN maintained its viewership year-over-year in primetime in both overall viewership and persons 18-49.
Across ESPN networks, the company increased its already industry-leading share of sports viewership, finishing this year at 31.5%. This marks an increase over the previous two fiscal years.

Outside of sports viewership share, ESPN’s success doesn’t take into account ESPN on ABC or its other cable networks.

ESPN+ Earns Best Metrics in Platform’s History
ESPN+ success mimicked ESPN’s linear victories, as the platform drove unique viewers and total minutes up for the fiscal year and individually in each quarter, resulting in the best year for the platform yet.

For the fiscal year, ESPN+ finished up double-digits in both uniques viewers (+11%) and total minutes viewed (+15%). In uniques and minutes, the platform showed tremendous growth each quarter, up 37%, 19%, 11%, and 7% and in total minutes, 13%, 26%, 7%, and 14%, respectively.

ESPN Digital Adds to Trend
ESPN Digital finished with its best usage ever, averaging 111 million unique visitors each month. The industry leading usage represents a 4% growth from fiscal year 2022 and bests the nearest competitor by 49%.

ESPN Social Approaching 9 Billion Engagements
ESPN Social had its best year of social engagement ever with 8.7B social engagements across all accounts and platforms, up 25% year-over-year. ESPN Social has had over 24 straight months of being number 1 for engagement in sports media.

Texas Showdown Delivers Most-Watched LCS on FOX and FS1 Since 2019

5.2 million viewers on average tuned-in across FOX, FS1, and FOX Deportes to watch the Texas Rangers defeat the Houston Astros in the ALCS presented by loanDepot.

Across FOX and FS1, the series averaged 5,045,000 viewers, up +4% compared to the Boston-Houston ALCS in 2021 (4,857,000)
Most-watched LCS on FOX and FS1 since 2019’s ALCS matchup between the Astros and Yankees (5,846,000)
Top Markets: Houston – 15.5/41 , Dallas – 12.1/33 , Austin – 7.7/24 , San Antonio – 6.5/19
FOX Deportes averaged 191,000 viewers throughout the series, up +61% over last year and +16% over 2021
With an average minute audience of 111,237, the series ranked as the second most-streamed LACS in FOX Sports history

Monday Night Football Garners More Than 18.6 Million Viewers, Driving a 57% Year-Over-Year Increase

ESPN’s Monday Night Football presentation of San Francisco 49ers at Minnesota Vikings (October 23, 8:15 p.m. ET) delivered more than 18.6 million viewers (ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, and NFL+), driving the television franchise to another weekly record during the 2023 season.

The audience of 18,642,000 viewers is MNF’s best Week 7 audience in the ESPN era (2006 – present), surpassing two Giants-Cowboys games, one from 2010 (17,953,000 viewers) and another in 2006 (16,028,000 viewers). The 49ers-Vikings matchup was up 57% from MNF Week 7 in 2022 (11.9 million viewers for Bears at Patriots).

Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli (ESPN2) delivered an audience of 1,068,000 viewers, the alternate telecast’s 23rd consecutive episode with more than a million viewers.

Monday Night Football Up 10% Year-Over-Year, Despite Added Doubleheader
Season-to-date, Monday Night Football is averaging 15.5 million, up 10% inclusive of all linear games (9 games in 2023 vs. 8 games in 2022), despite the Week 3 presentation of two games this fall vs. last season’s singular game in the same week. Excluding this year’s Week 3, Monday Night Football is up 19% year-over-year, averaging 16.7 million viewers.

The CW Scores Biggest Saturday Night Ever With Primetime ACC Football Game on Saturday, October 21

The CW scored its biggest Saturday night ever on October 21 when the ACC football primetime matchup between the Virginia Cavaliers and the North Carolina Tar Heels delivered the network’s largest audience on a Saturday night since national programming began on October 2, 2021 with 788,000 Total Viewers.

Virginia’s upset over North Carolina was the network’s most-watched ACC football game to date and saw week-to-week increases in all key demos including Total Viewers (788,000, +39% over last week), Adults 18-49 (251,000, +77% over last week), Men (531,000, +50% over last week) and Women (257,000, +19% over last week). At its peak, the game drew more than one million viewers at 9:30pm/ET (1.1 million Total Viewers) and 9:45pm/ET (1.3 million Total Viewers).

“Congratulations to The CW on reaching a new viewership milestone and we are proud that ACC Football was their most-watched Saturday night,” says ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips, Ph.D. “Our football season has been incredibly exciting and we look forward to what’s to come.”

The game’s thrilling conclusion, which saw Virginia linebacker James Jackson intercept North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye to seal the victory, was captured on The CW’s innovative “ref cam” angle, which drew raves from viewers as it captured the action on the field and allowed audiences to experience the decisive moment of the game first-hand.

The season-high numbers for ACC football come on the heels of impressive debuts for The CW’s new fall scripted series “Sullivan’s Crossing” and “The Spencer Sisters,” which delivered the strongest Wednesday night in almost two years for the network during their October 4 premieres.

ACC football continues on The CW this Saturday, October 28 at 2:00pm/ET with Clemson taking on NC State followed by Georgia Tech at Virginia on Saturday, November 4 at 2:00pm/ET.

PSU-OSU Ranks in Top Ten Regular Season CFB Matches Ever on FOX

9,955,000 viewers watched the Big Ten showdown in BIG NOON SATURDAY’s Games of the Week on FOX

Penn State – Ohio State:
- Scored 9,955,000 viewers on FOX – the network’s 7th most-watched regular season college football game in history
- Peaked at 11,503,000 viewers from 3:00 to 3:15 PM ET on FOX
- Most-watched telecast of the day on any network
- Third most-watched college football fame of the season on any network
- Fourth most-streamed college football game in FOX Sports History
Big Noon Kickoff: From 11:00 AM ET, posted 2,454,000 viewers on FOX – the 4th most-watched edition of the program ever

Houston’s Game 5 Comeback on FS1 Delivers ALCS Viewership Hit

4.5 million viewers tuned-in across FS1, FOX Deportes and FOX Sports streaming services to watch the Astros come back against the Rangers in Game 5 of the ALCS presented by loanDepot.

On FS!, the game average 4,222,000 viewers, up +18% compared to the Boston-Houston ALCSGame 5 on FS1 in 2021 (3,581,000)
Viewership on FS1 peaked from 7:45 – 8:00 PM ET with 6,524,000 viewers
Top Markets: Houston – 12.5/42 , Dallas – 8.6/31 , Austin – 5.3/22 , San Antonio – 4.9/18 , Cincinnati – 2,8/9
Through five games, the ALCS on FOX and FS1 is averaging 4,734,000 viewers, up +2%, over the Boston – Houston ALCS on FOX and FS1 in 2021 (4,647,000)
FOX Deportes averaged 209,000 viewers, making it the second most-watched ALCS Game 5 in Spanish-language television history

Prime Video’s TNF Posts Sixth Double-Digit YoY Viewership Increase

Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football generated its sixth consecutive double-digit viewership increase as the 2023 season continues to fly at a higher altitude. Last night’s live stream of Jaguars at Saints faced tough competition from LCS baseball and a Presidential address, yet Prime Video won the night in total viewers and across all key demos. Below, find viewership highlights from last night’s game, as well as several season-to-date figures and trends.

According to Nielsen National TV Ratings (panel only), TNF on Prime Video averaged 9.79 million viewers on Thursday night, an increase of +25% over last year’s comparable TNF game (7.83M for Saints vs. Cardinals, 10/20/22).
Season-to-date, TNF is averaging 12.91M among total viewers, an increase of +25% vs. last season’s six-game average on Prime Video (10.34M), and +13% vs. 2021 (11.38M).
- TNF’s 2023 six-game average is up +35% in total viewers over last year’s full-season average (12.91M vs. 9.58M).
As it has every week this season, TNF won the night among total viewers across all broadcast and cable programming. Last night’s game outperformed the No. 2 program on linear by +139%. (4.09M, Golden Bachelor on ABC).
Among viewers in the coveted P18-34 demographic, TNF on Prime averaged 2.09M, and outperformed all programming on Thursday (+370% over the No. 2 program).
Among viewers in the P18-49 demographic, TNF on Prime averaged 4.77M, and outperformed all programming on Thursday (+321% over the No. 2 program).
Season-to-date, TNF on Prime’s median age is 47, which is seven years younger than audiences watching the NFL on linear networks (54).
Through six weeks, TNF Tonight, TNF on Prime Video’s pregame show that kicks off each week at 7PM EST, is averaging 1.52M viewers, which is an increase of +36% over last year’s full-season average (1.12M).
Through five weeks (the most recent available postgame show data), TNF Nightcap is averaging 2.09M viewers, which is an increase of +25% over last year’s full-season average (1.68M).
According to Nielsen’s custom Integrated Live Streaming Report,* Prime Video averaged 10.69 million viewers (AMA) across all media platforms during last night’s Jaguars-Saints game, and is averaging 14.09M through six games. Please note that Nielsen’s custom Integrated Live Streaming Report is currently under review by the Media Rating Council and is not presently accredited.

ESPN College Football on Pace for Most-Watched Season Since 2016 – ABC is the Sport’s Most-Watched Network

Through seven weeks of the 2023 college football season, ESPN platforms are on pace for their most-watched season since 2016, delivering multi-year audience increases and several superlatives across multiple platforms and conferences. Overall, ESPN platforms aired the top game across all networks in six of the first seven weeks, own 52 percent of the share of minutes watched across all Nielsen-measured networks, and viewership is up nine percent year-over-year through the midway point of the 2023 season

ABC is the Top Network for College Football
ABC is the most-watched network in college football and is off to its best seven-week start since 2017, averaging 4.4 million viewers and up 16 percent over 2022. ABC’s late afternoon window is up +41 percent year-over-year and is averaging five million viewers, its largest average audience for that timeslot through midseason in 12 years.

ESPN Experiences Record-Setting Fall
ESPN is off to its best seven-week start since 2016, averaging 2.3 million viewers and currently up three percent over the 2022 season. ESPN has aired two of its seven most-watched regular season games of all time in 2023, including Colorado State at Colorado and Alabama at Texas. The early primetime window is averaging 3.8 million viewers through midseason, up 17 percent year-over-year and its largest audience for that timeslot since 2015.

ESPN Platforms Score Five of Top Seven Most-Viewed Matchups (excluding ESPN3 streaming)

No. 1 – Colorado/Oregon – 10.0M Viewers
Top game of the season and best Pac-12 conference game since 2006
No. 3 – Colorado State/Colorado – 9.3M Viewers
Fifth best regular season college football game on ESPN all-time
No. 4 – LSU/Florida State – 9.2M Viewers
Most-watched Labor Day Sunday game since 2016 and second best on record
No. 5 – Texas/Alabama – 8.8M Viewers
Seventh best regular season college football game on ESPN/ESPN2 all time
No. 7 – Oklahoma/Texas – 7.9M Viewers
Second-best Red River Rivalry game in full national window on record

College GameDay Continues Unparalleled Performance
Following its record-breaking 2022 season, College GameDay Built by The Home Depot is off to another strong start, delivering 2.0 million viewers on average – its second-best start since 2010. Trailing only last year’s viewership, the 2022-23 season finished in historical fashion as the most-watched year for the premier pre-game programming since increasing to three hours. College GameDay reigns supreme as the top pre-game studio show, with the final hour of CGD averaging double the number of viewers as the competition.

Three of the top five most-watched pre-November CGD telecasts since 2010 have aired this season, including Week 6 at the Texas State Fair for the Red River Rivalry (2.29M viewers), Week 3 in Boulder for the Rocky Mountain Showdown (2.27M viewers) and Week 4 in South Bend as Notre Dame played host to Ohio State (2.24M viewers).

ESPN+ Boasts Banner Year to Date
The 2023 season has been an impressive one thus far for ESPN+, as September 2023 was the top month ever for college football on ESPN+. This fall has also delivered the top two days ever for the sport on ESPN+ (Sept. 9 and Sept. 2) and three of the top four college football games ever on the platform.

Additional Viewership Superlatives
Viewership gains across ESPN platforms are driven by the P18-34 demographic, up 16% year-over-year, and P18-49 up 13%.
Several conferences are delivering increases in average audiences compared to the 2022 season, including the Pac-12 (+146%), Big 12 (+32%), ACC (+21%) and the American (+15%).

College football digital content has posted year-over-year gains in uniques (+8%) and page views (+12%). This season has included three of the top four days ever for college football content across ESPN digital, based on uniques.

ESPN’s Game 4 of the 2023 WNBA Finals Presented by YouTubeTV is Most-Watched Game 4 on Record

Game 4 of the 2023 WNBA Finals Presented by YouTubeTV – which saw the Las Vegas Aces become the first team to win consecutive championships in 21 years after a 70-69 victory against the New York Liberty – scored record-breaking viewership for ESPN. Game 4 averaged 889,000 viewers, the most-watched WNBA Games 4 Finals on record, and up 124 percent from Game 4 in 2022. Las Vegas Aces’ Championship-clinching win over the New York Liberty peaked at 1.3 million viewers, between 10-10:14 p.m. of the ESPN telecast.

The entire 2023 WNBA Finals Presented by YouTube TV on ESPN platforms averaged 728,000 viewers, making it the most-watched WNBA Finals in 20 years, and up 36 percent from 2022.

WNBA on ESPN Viewership Additional 2023 Highlights:

The 2023 WNBA Postseason on ESPN platforms averaged 470,000 viewers, making it the most-watch postseason in 16 years.
The full season (regular season, Playoffs and Finals) averaged 453,900 viewers, the most-watched full season on ESPN platforms in 18 years, and up 10 percent from 2022.
Most-watched regular season in 17 years. Across 24 games on ESPN platforms, the regular season averaged 440,000 viewers, up 18 percent from 2022.
ESPN’s telecast of Brittney Griner’s return to the WNBA was the most-watched WNBA regular-season game on cable television in 24 years and the most-watched WNBA opening night game on ESPN platforms in 11 years.
WNBA Countdown presented by Google, up 35 percent from last year’s playoffs (including Finals).
Diverse demos were key drivers of growth for the 2023 regular season, with non-Hispanic Black audiences up 29 percent, and Hispanic audiences up 23 percent, respectively.
The 2023 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game on ABC was the most-watched WNBA All-Star Game in 16 years, averaging 850,000 viewers with a peak of 955,000 viewers.
The Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest averaged 288,000 viewers, up 46 percent vs. last year’s ESPN2 debut.
WNBA Draft 2023 presented by State Farm® averaged 572,000 viewers on ESPN, up 42 percent over last year and the most-watched WNBA Draft since 2004.
ESPN Social WNBA-focused social posts across the company’s various accounts for the full season (regular season, Playoffs and Finals) garnered 31.3 million engagement, up 103 percent over 2022, and 265.6 million video views, up 22 percent from 2022.