Airing for the last time on ABC, the Rose Bowl saw a double-digit rise in ratings and viewership on New Year’s Day.
Friday’s Ohio St./Oregon game drew a 13.1 fast-national rating and 23.9 million viewers on ABC, up 12% in ratings and 16% in viewership from last year’s USC/Penn St. matchup (11.7, 20.6 mil), and up 18% and 26%, respectively, from USC/Illinois in ’07 (11.1, 19.0 mil).
This marks the highest rated, most-viewed Rose Bowl since USC/Michigan in ’07, which drew a 13.9 and 24 million viewers.
Despite the increases, the 13.1 rating is the 5th-lowest of the past 15 years for the Rose Bowl.
Friday’s game drew a 49.8 rating in Columbus, OH, and a 32.2 in Portland, OR — the highest rating ever for a bowl game on ESPN/ABC in both markets.
Ratings/viewership for the Rose Bowl since ’96
Asterisk (*) indicates National Championship Game
| Year | Date | Game | Net | Rating | Viewers (000) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Fri., 1/1/10 | Ohio St./Oregon | ABC |
13.1
|
23,918
|
| 2009 | Thu., 1/1/09 | USC/Penn St. | ABC |
11.7
|
20,603
|
| 2008 | Tue., 1/1/08 | USC/Illinois | ABC |
11.1
|
19,003
|
| 2007 | Mon., 1/1/07 | USC/Michigan | ABC |
13.9
|
24,025
|
| 2006 | Wed., 1/4/06 | Texas/USC* | ABC |
21.7
|
35,630
|
| 2005 | Sat., 1/1/05 | Texas/Michigan | ABC |
12.4
|
20,458
|
| 2004 | Thu., 1/1/04 | USC/Michigan | ABC |
14.3
|
23,871
|
| 2003 | Wed., 1/1/03 | Oklahoma/Washington St. | ABC |
11.3
|
18,298
|
| 2002 | Thu., 1/3/02 | Miami/Nebraska* | ABC |
13.8
|
21,559
|
| 2001 | Mon., 1/1/01 | Washington/Purdue | ABC |
14.0
|
—
|
| 2000 | Sat., 1/1/00 | Wisconsin/Stanford | ABC |
14.1
|
—
|
| 1999 | Fri., 1/1/99 | Wisconsin/UCLA | ABC |
13.3
|
—
|
| 1998 | Thu., 1/1/98 | Michigan/Washington St. | ABC |
17.6
|
—
|
| 1997 | Wed., 1/1/97 | Ohio St./Arizona St. | ABC |
16.5
|
—
|
| 1996 | Mon., 1/1/96 | USC/Northwestern | ABC |
19.2
|
—
|
(ESPN PR)
