NBCSN posted big gains for its coverage of the Premier League Boxing Day matches.
Saturday’s Liverpool/Leicester City English Premier League match drew 563,000 viewers on NBCSN, up 41% from Manchester United/Newcastle on Boxing Day last year (399K) and up 60% from West Ham/Arsenal on the U.K. holiday in 2013 (351K). Boxing Day, the day after Christmas, took place on a Friday last year and a Thursday in 2013.
The concurrent Chelsea/Watford match on USA Network had 363,000, bringing the combined audience in the window to 926,000.
Earlier in the day, Stoke City/Manchester United had 335,000 — up 75% from Chelsea/West Ham last year (191K) and up 14% from Hull City/Manchester United in 2013 (294K). Ratings and viewership were not immediately available for NBC’s Boxing Day doubleheader of Newcastle/Everton and Southampton/Arsenal.
In other EPL action, Monday’s Manchester United/Chelsea match drew 481,000 viewers — up 61% from Liverpool/Swansea City last year (299K). Leiscester City/Manchester City had 299,000 the following afternoon, and Sunderland/Liverpool scored 264,000 on Wednesday; there were no comparable matches last year or in 2013.
