ESPN’s first NFL preseason telecast increased by double-digits over last year. In other news, Sunday Night Baseball had a rough outing last week and the Univision networks have generated sizable increases for coverage of the Liga MX Apertura season.
ESPN’s NFL Preseason Opener Up Double-Digits
- Thursday’s Jaguars/Bears NFL preseason game drew 3.8 million viewers on ESPN, up 29% from Chargers/Bears in Week 2 of last year’s preseason (3.0M), but down 19% from Bengals/Falcons in Week 2 two years ago (4.7M). Last year’s preseason opener on ESPN — another Bengals/Falcons game — drew 3.1 million. (Thu. numbers from TV By the Numbers)
Nats/Braves Low on Sunday Night Baseball
- Last week’s Braves/Nationals Sunday Night Baseball game drew a 1.0 U.S. rating and 1.5 million viewers on ESPN, down 17% in ratings and 15% in viewership from Rays/Dodgers last year (1.2, 1.7M) and tied as the third-least watched Sunday night game of the season. (Sun. numbers from Sports Business Daily)
Liga MX Viewership Up Big Across Univision Networks
- Coverage of the Liga MX 2014 Apertura season has averaged 797,000 viewers on UniMas and 793,000 on Univision, up 52% and 29%, respectively, from last year. On cable, the Univision Deportes Network has averaged 232,000 for its coverage — up 70%. The most watched match of the season thus far was UNAM/Chivas on July 27, which earned 1.1 million on Univision. (Univision)
