Finebaum Signs With ESPN, SEC Network Audience For NBA Conf. Semis Down ESPN Layoffs Reportedly In "Low Hundreds" WNBA Sky Ink Five-Year Local TV Deal PGATour.com To Air Series On UW Golf Team ESPN Has First Mass Layoffs In Years SI Brass Discuss Future Of Publication "30 For 30" To Feature Pistons' Bad Boys ACC Network Faces Roadblock In Rights Issue Preakness Stakes Ratings Up 9% For NBC
Upcoming Conferences and Events
SBD/January 6, 2012/Media
Final Nielsen Ratings From Recent Sports Telecasts On Broadcast, Cable TV
Published January 6, 2012
The charts below list final Nielsen ratings from recent sports telecasts. All ratings listed are U.S. ratings (THE DAILY).
STRONG START FOR NBA TV: NBA TV began its '11-12 regular-season schedule averaging approximately 405,000 viewers. The Bulls-Clippers Dec. 30 matchup was the most-viewed regular-season game ever for NBA TV, drawing an average of 722,000 viewers. That surpassed the previous record of 681,000 viewers for a Trail Blazers-Heat game last season. The net so far this season is up 133% over '10-11 in the adults 18-24 demo, and 115% among men 18-34. Additionally, the net has seen a 145% increase over '10-11 among adults 18-49 and 143% among adults 25-54. Also, about 35 million viewers tuned in to watch the NBA on Christmas Day across ABC, ESPN and TNT, making it the most-watched Christmas Day ever for the league. Unique viewership was up 2% over last season's previous high. In addition, the average viewer watched 130 minutes of NBA basketball on Christmas, another all-time mark. Meanwhile, TNT’s NBA doubleheader Thursday night earned a 2.2 U.S. rating, up 120% over last year’s comparable games. The Heat-Hawks game, which kicked off the double dip by going into triple overtime, drew a 2.1 U.S. rating, up 75% over last year. The Lakers-Trail Blazers game that followed earned a 2.5 U.S. rating, up 178% over last season (THE DAILY).
TEEING OFF: Golf Channel recorded its most-watched year ever in '11, with viewership up almost 30% over '10 and 3% over '09. PGA Tour viewership was up 23% and LPGA Tour viewership was up 30%. Coverage of the Presidents Cup from Nov. 14-20 earned the net its highest-rated week in history, and Nov. 18 marked the highest-rated day in Golf Channel history (Golf Channel).
PUCK ACTION: TSN recorded an average audience of 2.8 million viewers for coverage of the Canada-U.S. IIHF World Junior Hockey preliminary matchup on Dec. 31, making the game the most-watched program on Canadian television. TSN averaged 2.4 million viewers for Team Canada's four preliminary round games, and all four games ranked as the most-watched program of the day on Canadian television in all key demographics. Online, TSN.ca registered 190,000 live streams of Team Canada games (TSN).
Return to top
| TELECAST |
DATE
|
NET
|
TIME (ET)
|
RATING
|
| "Road to the Bowls" |
12/31
|
ABC
|
2:30-3:30pm
|
0.5
|
| AutoZone Liberty Bowl: Cincinnati-Vanderbilt |
12/31
|
ABC
|
3:30-7:00pm
|
1.9
|
| NCAA Basketball: Louisville-Kentucky |
12/31
|
CBS
|
12:00-2:00pm
|
1.9
|
| Hyundai Sun Bowl: Georgia Tech-Utah |
12/31
|
CBS
|
2:00-6:00pm
|
2.7
|
| U.S. Snowboard Cup (taped) |
12/31
|
NBC
|
5:00-6:00pm
|
0.8
|
| "The NFL Today" |
1/1
|
CBS
|
12:00-1:00pm
|
3.8
|
| "NFL on CBS": (regional) |
1/1
|
CBS
|
1:00-4:15pm
|
8.1
|
| "NFL on CBS": Chiefs-Broncos (66%) |
1/1
|
CBS
|
4:15-7:30pm
|
15.1
|
| "NFL on Fox": (regional) |
1/1
|
Fox
|
1:00-4:15pm
|
4.5
|
| "NFL on Fox": Buccaneers-Falcons (89%) |
1/1
|
Fox
|
4:15-7:30pm
|
11.6
|
| "A Salute To Ladies of the Ice" (taped) |
1/1
|
NBC
|
4:00-6:00pm
|
0.8
|
| "Football Night in America" |
1/1
|
NBC
|
7:30-8:15pm
|
5.5
|
| "Sunday Night Football": Cowboys-Giants |
1/1
|
NBC
|
8:30-11:30pm
|
15.7
|
| NHL Winter Classic: Rangers-Flyers |
1/2
|
NBC
|
3:00-6:00pm
|
2.1
|
TEEING OFF: Golf Channel recorded its most-watched year ever in '11, with viewership up almost 30% over '10 and 3% over '09. PGA Tour viewership was up 23% and LPGA Tour viewership was up 30%. Coverage of the Presidents Cup from Nov. 14-20 earned the net its highest-rated week in history, and Nov. 18 marked the highest-rated day in Golf Channel history (Golf Channel).
PUCK ACTION: TSN recorded an average audience of 2.8 million viewers for coverage of the Canada-U.S. IIHF World Junior Hockey preliminary matchup on Dec. 31, making the game the most-watched program on Canadian television. TSN averaged 2.4 million viewers for Team Canada's four preliminary round games, and all four games ranked as the most-watched program of the day on Canadian television in all key demographics. Online, TSN.ca registered 190,000 live streams of Team Canada games (TSN).
