Overnight ratings for sporting events on broadcast
Final ratings for some of these events may already be available.
Source: Sports Business Daily
Football
| Sport | Game/Event | Date | Time | Net | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NFL | Cowboys/Giants (or other regional action) | Sun., 12/6/09 | 4:15 PM | FOX | 18.9 |
| NFL | Vikings/Cardinals | Sun., 12/6/09 | 8:30 PM | NBC |
13.7
|
| College football | Alabama/Florida | Sat., 12/5/09 | 4 PM | CBS |
11.8
|
| NFL | Patriots/Dolphins (or other regional action) | Sun., 12/6/09 | 1 PM | CBS |
11.1
|
| NFL | Eagles/Falcons (or other regional action) | Sun., 12/6/09 | 1 PM | FOX |
10.5
|
| NFL | The OT | Sun., 12/6/09 | 7:30 PM | FOX |
9.3
|
| College football | Texas/Nebraska | Sat., 12/5/09 | 8 PM | ABC | 7.6 |
| College football | BCS Selection Show | Sun., 12/6/09 | 8 PM | FOX | 6.4 |
| College football | Cincinnati/Pittsburgh | Sat., 12/5/09 | 12 PM | ABC | 5.1 |
| NFL | Football Night in America | Sun., 12/6/09 | 7:30 PM | NBC | 4.7 |
| NFL | FOX NFL Sunday | Sun., 12/6/09 | 12 PM | FOX | 3.4 |
| NFL | The NFL Today | Sun., 12/6/09 | 12 PM | CBS | 2.7 |
| College football | College Football Today | Sat., 12/5/09 | 3 PM | CBS | 2.6 |
| College football | Arizona/USC | Sat., 12/5/09 | 3:45 PM | ABC | 2.5 |
- FOX: The 18.9 overnight rating for Sunday’s NFL national window (mostly Cowboys/Giants) was up 16% from last year’s comparable Week 13 telecast, and marked the highest overnight rating for an NFL telecast this season. Earlier in the day, FOX drew a 10.5 overnight for regional action featuring Eagles/Falcons, up 27% from last year.
- The BCS Selection Show drew a 6.4 overnight on FOX Sunday night, off 6% from a 6.8 last year, and the lowest overnight for the Selection Show since ’05.
- CBS: The top football game of the week on CBS was not an NFL telecast. Saturday’s Alabama/Florida SEC Championship Game drew an 11.8 overnight rating on CBS, up 13% from last year, and the highest overnight ever for the SEC title game. The 11.8 also marks the highest overnight for a non-Bowl college football game since ’06.
- Sunday’s NFL singleheader on CBS drew an 11.1 overnight rating, off 13% from a 12.7 for comparable coverage last year.
- NBC: Sunday night’s Vikings/Cardinals game drew a 13.7 overnight rating on NBC, up 23% from last year’s Vikings/Bears tilt (11.1).
- ABC: The Texas/Nebraska Big 12 Championship Game drew a 7.6 overnight rating on ABC Saturday night, up 29% from last year, and the highest overnight for the Big 12 title game since ’00. Earlier in the day, Cincinnati/Pittsburgh drew an impressive 5.1 overnight (up 76% from last year), while Arizona/USC drew a mere 2.5 (down 17%).
Golf
| Sport | Game/Event | Date | Time | Net | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golf | Chevron World Challenge, Final Round | Sun., 12/6/09 | 3 PM | NBC | 1.0 |
| Golf | Chevron World Challenge, Third Round | Sat., 12/5/09 | 3 PM | NBC | 0.6 |
- The Chevron World Challenge did not benefit from the incessant media attention directed to its absent host, Tiger Woods. Final round coverage of the event drew a 1.0 overnight on Sunday, down 29% from last year. Meanwhile, Saturday’s third round drew a 0.6 overnight, down 54%.
Figure skating
| Sport | Game/Event | Date | Time | Net | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Figure skating | ISU Grand Prix of Skating Final (taped) | Sun., 12/6/09 | 12 PM | NBC | 1.3 |
| Figure skating | CelebTV.com’s Holiday of Stars (taped) | Sat., 12/5/09 | 5 PM | ABC | 1.1 |
Other
| Sport | Game/Event | Date | Time | Net | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| College basketball | North Carolina/Kentucky | Sat., 12/5/09 | 12:30 PM | CBS | 1.6 |
| Skiing | Birds of Prey, Men’s Alpine (taped) | Sun., 12/6/09 | 2 PM | NBC | 0.9 |
- CBS drew a 1.6 overnight rating for Saturday’s North Carolina/Kentucky college basketball game — higher than both games of the network’s season opening doubleheader last year.
