The NLCS got off to a slower start in the ratings, but still paid major dividends for Fox Sports 1.
Game 1 of the Dodgers/Cubs National League Championship Series had a 3.2 rating and 5.9 million viewers on FS1 Saturday night, per Nielsen fast-nationals — down 29% in ratings and 25% in viewership from Cubs/Mets on TBS last year (4.5, 7.9M) but up a tick and 18%, respectively, from Giants/Cardinals on the FOX broadcast network in 2014 (3.1, 5.0M).
Compared to Game 1 of last year’s LCS on the Fox Sports family of networks, ratings fell 20% and viewership 9% from a 4.0 and 6.5 million for Blue Jays/Royals. That game aired on a Friday on FOX and faced limited college football competition.
Though down from last year, the Cubs’ win delivered the largest LCS audience ever on FS1 and the network’s third-largest audience overall — narrowly trailing last year’s Astros/Royals Game 5 (5.94M to 5.92M) and behind Game 4 of Cubs/Giants last Tuesday (6.4M).
The Cubs have now played in three of the four most-watched programs in FS1 history, which includes its days as Speed Channel.
Big numbers for Fox Sports 1 are not necessarily big numbers overall. Saturday’s opener earned a lower rating and viewership than all four of last year’s Mets/Cubs games on TBS. The low water mark for last year’s NLCS was a 3.8 with 6.6 million viewers for Game 2.
Figures for the first two ALCS games on TBS have not yet been made public.
(Sat. numbers from Fox Sports PR/Twitter 10/16, Michael Mulvihill/Twitter 10/16)
