First, the results of last week’s predictions.
| Sport | Game/Event | Net |
Prediction
|
Final rating
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soccer | Confederations Cup, USA/Brazil | ESPN |
1.0
|
2.2
|
| The final of the Confederations Cup drew a 2.2 U.S. rating last Sunday, superb for soccer on cable. The match drew 3.9 million viewers, making it the third-most viewed U.S. National Team telecast ever on ESPN. | ||||
| NASCAR | Lenox Industrial Tools 301 | TNT |
3.3
|
3.5
|
| For the first time all season, a NASCAR race had an increase in ratings. The 3.5 U.S. rating for last Sunday’s Lenox Industrial Tools 301 marks a 3% increase over last year’s 3.4. Prior to the race, 14 of the first 15 NASCAR races of the season had declining ratings. | ||||
| MLB | Mets/Yankees | ESPN |
2.2
|
N/A
|
| Ratings for last Sunday’s Mets/Yankees game on ESPN are unavailable. | ||||
This week’s predictions:
| Sport | Game/Event | Date/Time | Net |
Prediction
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennis | Wimbledon Men’s Final, Federer/Roddick | 9 AM Sunday | NBC |
2.6
|
| Last year’s Federer/Nadal classic is a tough act to follow — not just in terms of the quality of play, but in the ratings as well. The epic 5-set win by Nadal drew a 3.5 rating, the best for the Wimbledon men’s final since ’00. Look for the numbers to fall back to earth this year. The last Wimbledon men’s final to feature an American drew a 2.1 (Federer def. Roddick, ’05). | ||||
| Tennis | Wimbledon Women’s Final, V. Williams/S. Williams | 9 AM Saturday | NBC |
2.4
|
| The Venus/Serena matchup is not the draw it once was. Last year’s Wimbledon final between the two drew a 2.5 rating, up 14% from the ’07 final, but the lowest rated all-Williams final ever on broadcast. Do not expect better numbers for this year’s rematch. | ||||
| NASCAR | Coke Zero 400 | 8 PM Saturday | TNT |
3.6
|
| On the heels of its first increase in ratings since last September, NASCAR heads into the Coke Zero 400 on Saturday night. Last year’s race drew a 3.8 rating; look for a slight decline this time around. | ||||
| Beach volleyball | AVP Crocs Tour, Lumber Liquidators Coney Island Open | 4:30 PM Sunday | NBC |
0.7
|
| Look for a steep drop in ratings for the AVP Tour on Sunday. Coverage on the comparable date last year drew a 1.6 rating, thanks to a lead-in from the Federer/Nadal Wimbledon final. | ||||
| PGA | AT&T National, Final Round | 3 PM Sunday | CBS |
3.3
|
| Expect the three-year-old AT&T National draw its best ratings ever thanks to the presence of Tiger Woods. Final round coverage of the event drew a 1.5 last year, and the final round in ’07 — the inaugural year of the tournament — drew a 2.6. | ||||
| IRL | Camping World Grand Prix | 1 PM Sunday | ABC |
0.7
|
| ABC airs its fourth IRL race of the season on Sunday, coming off of double-digit declines for its first three telecasts. Expect more of the same this week; last year’s race drew a 1.0 rating. | ||||
