World Series ratings and viewership rebounded from last year, but remained well below what had been the norm.
The six-game Braves-Astros World Series averaged a 6.5 rating and 11.75 million viewers on FOX, up 25% in ratings and 20% in viewership from last year’s six-game average for Dodgers-Rays (5.2, 9.77M) but down 20% and 16% respectively from the seven-game Astros-Nationals series in 2019 (8.1, 13.91M).
The series tops only last year as the lowest rated and least-watched Fall Classic ever. Prior to last year, the all-time lows were a 7.6 rating and 12.66 million viewers for the Giants’ four-game sweep of the Tigers in 2012.
Notably, while ratings declined 20% from 2019 the share — the percentage of homes with televisions in use tuned to the game in the average minute — was even (16). Shares have held up far better than ratings over the past year as they exclude the growing number of homes that are simply not tuning into traditional television.
Tuesday’s clinching Game 6 averaged a series-high 7.9 rating and 13.97 million viewers (14.31M across all Fox platforms), up 16% in ratings and 10% in viewership from last year (6.8, 12.70M), but down 18% and 16% respectively from the non-clinching Game 6 in 2019 (9.6, 16.55M).
The Braves’ blowout win, which peaked with 16.26 million viewers in the final minutes, tops only last year and Giants-Royals in 2014 (13.37M) as the least-watched Game 6 of the World Series.
If low for the Fall Classic, Game 6 nonetheless delivered baseball’s largest audience since 2019 and the fourth-largest sports audience — outside of football or the Olympics — since the wave of cancellations and postponements that decimated the industry in March of last year. This year’s World Series generated five of the top ten such audiences over that span.
Game 6 hit series-highs in each of the key young adult demographics, averaging a 3.4 in adults 18-49, 4.4 in 25-54 and 2.2 in 18-34. Compared to last year’s record-low Game 6, ratings held steady in 18-49, increased 10% in 25-54 (vs. 4.0) and declined 8% in 18-34. Five of the six World Series games declined in the 18-34 demo.
The World Series averaged a higher rating and more viewers than the NBA Finals for the second-straight year, the first time the Fall Classic has topped its NBA counterpart in consecutive years since a run of nine straight wins from 1999-07. The six-game Bucks-Suns finals averaged a 5.2 and 9.91 million.
Game 6 outdrew the corresponding game of the Finals (6.6, 12.52M), though as usual the NBA game came out ahead in the key demographics (4.3 in 18-49, 4.7 in 25-54 and 3.8 in 18-34).
Local ratings for Game 6 were not immediately available.
Across the board, the marquee sporting events that sank to all-time ratings lows last year have recovered with double-digit gains. With that said, the majority — including the World Series, NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Final, Kentucky Derby and final round of the Masters — have remained well below the pre-hiatus level of 2019.
Most-watched sportscasts since 2019, excluding football and Olympics
[Nielsen estimates from Programming Insider 11.3, ShowBuzz Daily 11.3, AP 11.3, network PR]
