Follow me on Twitter
Ok, these are 3 very different articles so I’m going to do the tie-in before the links. The NHL finals in games 1 and 2 were down from 2 million viewers last year to 1.3 million. There was a huge bump for the last game of 2.4 million. The NBA finals averaged 11.65 million, and that’s down from last year’s 12 million. In a market where hockey has felt like “king” since about the mid 90s, the discrepancies in viewership seem incredibly vast.
During the regular season, NHL games were averaging around 700k views with the NBA averaging around 2 million. So, the NHL was down (was at 2 million for the first two games last year) and so was the NBA (over 12 million during finals). These are the numbers that keep me coming back to “something needs to change”.
The NBA is outpacing the NHL nearly 3 to 1 in the regular season and near 6 to 1 in the finals. The financials for both sports are radically different in terms of cost of production. We’re also in a time of consumer change and inflation. Sven brought this up, but gaming has become an odd competitor to sports and entertainment. Not just online play (i know of at least a couple people who have done 12 hour+ sessions) but youtube channels where thousands of people watch someone play a video game. That one baffles me a bit, but it’s another competitor in terms of viewership.
Perusing overall views, football is not just the most popular sport in America, it’s the most viewed show overall according to the 7 day study of
The Hollywood Reporter. Sunday night football on NBC had just over 18 million views and Monday night football came in 2nd with just over 10 million on ABC. In context, more people watched Sunday night football in the regular season than the final games of the NHL (2.4 million) and NBA (around 12 million) combined. Giving the NHL an average of 750k viewers, Sunday night football gets the viewing equivalent of 24 NHL games. Add to that the 10 million on Monday (equivalent to 13 NHL average broadcasts) and in 2 days the NFL sees the equivalent of 37 NHL games in viewership. The NBA’s averages of around 2 million in the regular season outpaces the NHL at 2.7 to 1.
Now the final component. I’ve touched on this several times, but with spending down and news that interest rates aren’t going down any time soon for borrowing, advertisers are pulling back and some are even asking for refunds (I talked about this regarding one of the streaming services)
From MSN
“Many advertisers have reduced budgets, according to media buyers, or are waiting to register them until later in the haggling session. But there is a sense that spending from some TV stalwarts is down. Pharmaceutical advertisers, who have been robust spenders in TV for the past several years, are showing mixed support in 2023, according to one buying executive. Auto marketers, hurt in recent years by supply chain issues due to the coronavirus pandemic, have been hesitant so far. Technology advertisers, another big supporter of TV in the recent past, have cut budgets after seeing some stock downturns and significant layoffs. A bright spot has been consumer packaged goods companies, which are trying to keep market share even as the cost of their products has gone up due to inflation.”
If you’ve hung in there this long, here’s the good and the bad. Las Vegas winning the cup is good news in attracting new ownership. The NHL was able to sell some last minute ads at around 2 million for 30 second spots, but the debt racked up over the past few years is tangible. The Ottawa sale discovery mode found 495 million in debt, half the asking price. There’s a billion dollar loan from 2021 that added to a year when all the clubs showed a net loss in income.
We’ll know more about Bally on July 1st as 4 MLB teams are due payments, but the MLB has been aggressive in contingency planning. I honestly have no idea what is going to happen. Bally is fighting to keep some teams and letting others walk. The court is calling for the full amounts owed to be paid but with a 9 billion dollar deficit as an impetus for the bankruptcy, it feels like more franchises are going to move on from Bally.
My personal thought is where it has been since the announcement of Bally’s bankruptcy. Neither ESPN or Bally have given the needed boost for the NHL. Seeing 12 million vs. 2 million in views for the NBA vs the NHL in the finals is a sobering differentiator. Add to that reductions in ad revenue and entertainment spending and something has to give. The NHLPA and the NHL need to sit down and have some serious talks. Expect the Arizona issue to be scrutinized highly as the situation complicates the overall HRR intake for the league.
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»