ESPN put up unimpressive numbers for a forgettable NBA doubleheader. In other news, the NFL Combine got off to a slower start, and FS1 did not attract many viewers for its FIFA election coverage.
Weak Numbers For Low-Key NBA on ESPN
- Friday’s Bulls/Hawks NBA regular season game drew a 0.7 final rating and 1.1 million viewers on ESPN, down a tick in ratings and 7% in viewership from Heat/Pelicans last year (0.8, 1.2M) and down 22% in both measures from Warriors/Knicks in 2014 (0.9, 1.4M). The Grizzlies/Lakers nightcap had just 964,000, down 43% from Thunder/Blazers last year (1.7M) and down 10% from Pelicans/Suns in ’14 (1.1M). Not including games on NBA TV, it was the seventh telecast of the season to slip below one million viewers — compared to five at the same point last year. (via Programming Insider)
NFL Combine Starts With Decline
- Day one of the NFL Scouting Combine, which featured workouts for running backs, offensive linemen and special team players, scored 156,000 viewers on NFL Network Friday — down 8% from last year (169K) and down 43% from 2014, when the event started on a Saturday (277K). (via ShowBuzz Daily)
FIFA Election Coverage Attracts 20K on FS1
- Live coverage of the FIFA Presidential Election earned 20,000 viewers on Fox Sports 1 from 6-10:26 AM ET Friday morning. As should be no surprise, the telecast ranked well behind the three competing hours of SportsCenter on ESPN (268K). To put the numbers in further perspective, NBA TV scored 21,000 viewers for a Bighorns/Warriors NBA D-League game Friday night. (via Sports TV Ratings)
