Recent sports TV ratings, including a season-high, of sorts, for Cubs-Cardinals; a four-year high for the Tour de France; and a double-digit decline for the WGC Invitational.
Cubs-Cards hits non-exclusive season-high
Wednesday’s Cubs-Cardinals Major League Baseball game averaged a 0.6 rating and 1.05 million viewers on ESPN, marking the most-watched non-exclusive game of the season. No other non-exclusive game has cracked the million mark; the previous high was 977,000 for Cubs-Astros in May. There was no comparable game last year.
Including exclusive telecasts, the Cubs’ win ranks third among weekday games this season — behind Astros-Rangers on the first night after the All-Star break, when no other games were played (1.20M), and Red Sox-Mariners on Opening Day (1.19M).
In other action, Braves-Nationals drew a 0.6 rating and 819,000 viewers on ESPN Monday night — down a tick in ratings and 17% in viewership from Phillies-Red Sox last year (0.7, 986K), but up a tick and 11% respectively from Indians-Red Sox in 2017 (0.5, 735K).
Tour de France hits four-year high
The Tour de France averaged 359,000 viewers on NBC and NBCSN, up 11% from last year, up 8% from 2017 (331K), and the highest average since 2015 (395K). Going back further, this year’s edition was the second-most watched since 2012.
Coverage of the penultimate stage last Saturday averaged a 0.7 rating and 1.05 million viewers on NBC, the largest live audience for the event since 2013 (1.08M).
WGC Invitational down double-digits, no matter the comparison
Last Sunday’s final round of the PGA Tour/WGC-St. Jude Invitational averaged a 1.6 rating and 2.31 million viewers on CBS, down 30% in ratings and 33% in viewership from last year (2.3, 3.45M), and down 11% and 13% respectively from 2017 (1.8, 2.66M). The 1.6 rating is the lowest for final round coverage of the event — previously the Bridgestone Invitational — since 2012 (1.3).
While a continuation of the Bridgestone Invitational, the tournament is also the successor to the St. Jude Classic. Compared to that tournament last year, final round ratings fell 11% (from 1.8) and viewership 13% (from 2.64M).
Third round coverage had a 1.1 and 1.60 million last Saturday, down 45% in both measures from last year (2.0, 2.92M). Compared to last year’s St. Jude Classic, ratings were flat and viewership fell 2% (from 1.64M).
Lead-in coverage on Golf Channel had a 0.31 (-51%) and 418,000 (-57%) on Saturday and a 0.37 (-44%) and 535,000 (-47%) on Sunday.
[Numbers from Nielsen via Programming Insider 8.1, ShowBuzz Daily 7.30, NBC Sports]
