MLS Cup On ESPN Sees Big Jump In Overnights For Galaxy's 1-0 Win

ESPN earned a 0.8 overnight Nielsen rating for the Galaxy's 1-0 win over the Dynamo in the MLS Cup last night from 9:00-11:45pm ET, up from a 0.5 overnight for last year's Rapids-FC Dallas matchup, which began at 8:30pm (Austin Karp, THE DAILY). In DC, Steven Goff noted coverage of MLS Cup for the third straight season began at 9:00pm with kickoff coming around 9:25pm, as TV "dictates the starting time." Those times, though, "shouldn't be accepted in MLS, a league that has grown by leaps and bounds over 16 seasons but is still struggling to win over casual sports fans." The late kickoff "on a school night also deters younger fans," who "have grown up with MLS and are ripe for life-long commitment to clubs and the league as a whole." The "problem for MLS is starting the game so late on a Sunday" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 11/19).