NBC earned a second-straight increase for English Premier League coverage last weekend. In other news, the Arena Football League title game had a decline on ESPN and the opening round of the WNBA Playoffs saw a solid increase in viewership.
Week 2 of Premier League Season Up on NBC
- The Week 2 Everton/Arsenal English Premier League match earned a 0.6 final rating and 850,000 viewers on NBC last weekend, flat in ratings and up 8% in viewership from Aston Villa/Arsenal last year (0.6, 789K). NBC’s season opener a week earlier was also up from last year. (Wknd. numbers from Sports Business Daily)
ArenaBowl Ratings Down in Shift From Broadcast to Cable
- Last week’s Sabercats/Gladiators ArenaBowl earned a 0.3 U.S. rating and 583,000 viewers on ESPN, down 40% in ratings from last year’s game on broadcast network CBS. Viewership for last year’s game was not available. (Sat. numbers from Awful Announcing)
First Round of WNBA Playoffs Up on ESPN2
- ESPN2 averaged a 0.2 U.S. rating and 262,000 viewers for the first round of the WNBA Playoffs (six telecasts), up a tick in ratings and 31% in viewership from last year (0.1, 200K). The network’s top telecast was Game 2 between the Dream and the Sky last Sunday night, which earned 314,000 viewers. (ESPN Media Zone, Awful Announcing)
