Twenty-four hours before kickoff of Liverpool vs. Norwich City at Anfield – the first match of the 2019-20 Premier League season – the Exploding Heads guys set out from Bournemouth’s Vitality Stadium with the hopes of reaching all 20 Premier League stadiums in 24 hours. After departing Norwich City’s Carrow Road, it’s a race against the clock to visit the homes of Leicester City, Aston Villa, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Sheffield United, Newcastle United, Burnley, Manchester City, Manchester United and Everton before arriving at Anfield for the opening match. Did they make it?
Gentlemen’s Championship Ranks as Second Most-Viewed Tennis Telecast in ESPN History
Multiple Events Experience Summer Ratings Spike
(espnpressroom.com) The 2019 Wimbledon Championships on ESPN averaged 877,000 viewers (P2+), an increase of 30% over last year (675,000), according to Nielsen. The two weeks of coverage included nearly 150 hours from London. Eleven of the 13 days experienced an increase in viewership.
The most-viewed two days came on Championship Weekend – 3,329,000 for the Gentlemen’s Championship and Ladies’ Doubles Championship on Sunday – ESPN’s second-most viewed tennis telecast in history, and an average of 1,197,000 for Saturday’s Ladies’ Championship and the Men’s Doubles Championship. Sunday’s Men’s Final telecast was the most-viewed since the Federer vs. Murray final in 2012 with 3,300,000 viewers, an increase of 211% from last year’s Men’s final telecast.
Additional Summer Event Increases
Additional ESPN summer events that have seen viewership growth:
Major League Baseball’s Home Run Derby which averaged 6,201,000 viewers (P2+), an increase of 4% over last year (5,971,000).
Formula 1—through ten live races this season— has averaged 677,000 viewers (P2+), an increase of 18% over last year (574,000).
NBA Summer League games averaged 601,000 viewers on ESPN, an increase of 35% from last year.
NBA Summer League matchup between New Orleans and New York averaged 1,641,000 viewers (P2+), making it the most-viewed NBA Summer League game ever across ESPN networks.
Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest which averaged 1,153,000 viewers (P2+), an increase of 4% from last year (1,114,000).
