The Pro Bowl’s early decade success seems a lifetime ago.
The NFL Pro Bowl had a 4.6 overnight rating on ESPN Sunday night, down 8% from last year (5.0), down 18% from 2015 (5.6) and the lowest for the game since at least 2006 (overnights prior to 2007 were not available). Overnights for the game have now declined in six consecutive years.
The Pro Bowl had an early decade resurgence that coincided with its move to the week before the Super Bowl. The game topped a 7.0 overnight four straight years from 2010-13, including an 8.6 on FOX in 2011 — still the highest for the game since 2000. The numbers started to sink once the game shifted to an “unconferenced” format in 2014, exacerbated by a move to cable the following year. This year’s return to the traditional AFC vs. NFC format did nothing to stop the slide.
Compared to the other major All-Star games, last year’s record-low MLB All-Star Game had a substantially higher overnight, albeit on broadcast network FOX (6.4). Last year’s NBA All-Star Game also did better in the metered markets, with the caveat that it aired on both TNT and TBS (5.4). The Pro Bowl did manage to surpass the NHL All-Star Game on NBC earlier in the day, which had a 1.6.
The Pro Bowl closed out a tough NFL season for ESPN. Of the network’s 19 total telecasts — one preseason game, sixteen regular season games, one playoff game and the Pro Bowl — 15 declined from last year.
(Wknd. numbers via Sports Business Daily 1.30)
