The NFL’s TV ratings are off six percent overall across all networks compared to the 2019 season, numbers that could impact the league’s long term future.
According to Front Office Sports, Week 11 this year performed fairly well and was only off one percent over 2019. The league averaged 16.4 million viewers for Week 11, the site said.
However, overall, the league is down in ratings over 2019.
“Season-to-date, the NFL is averaging 15 million viewers. That’s off 6% from the same point during the 2019 season.,” Front Office Sports reported on Tuesday.
It has already been reported that the various NFL broadcasts are way down this year. Monday Night Football, for instance, has crashed 30 percent. Meanwhile, Sunday Night Football has tumbled 23 percent.
Front Office Sports reminds its readers that this season’s numbers are important for the NFL’s immediate future.
“The stakes are high,” the site notes. “All of the league’s media deals expire after the 2021 and 2022 seasons. There are potentially billions of dollars at stake as the NFL tries to nearly double its $5 billion annual rights fees from media partners ESPN, CBS, NBC, and Fox.”
The 2020 ratings look to be reversing the small, five percent gains seen during the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
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