TBS saw record viewership for the National League side of the MLB Postseason, while Fox Sports 1 is struggling in the ALCS without a big-market U.S. team in the mix. On the gridiron, Michigan's heartbreaking loss to Michigan State delivered record numbers for ESPN, while the NFL on NBC and CBS are on pace for the best seasons in decades.
TBS Hits Record High for MLB Postseason
TBS's coverage of the NL Wild Card, Division Series and League Championship Series averaged 6.3 million total viewers and a 3.9 U.S. HH rating for 14 game telecasts to deliver the network's most-viewed postseason coverage of all time, according to Nielsen Fast Nationals. This year's MLB Postseason on TBS is up 48% in total viewers and 44% in U.S. HH rating over the network's postseason telecasts in 2014. TBS' MLB Postseason coverage also generated double-digit growth across all key demos including a 58% increase in People 18-49.
The network's exclusive coverage of the 2015 National League Championship Series - with the New York Mets sweeping the Chicago Cubs in four games - averaged 7.9 million total viewers and a 4.8 U.S. HH rating to garner TBS' most-viewed NLCS coverage of all time and the most-watched NLCS across all of television since 2010. This year's NLCS coverage is up 58% in total viewers and 50% in U.S. HH rating over the network's NLCS telecasts in 2013, with increases of 55% in total viewers and 50% in U.S. HH rating vs. last year's comparable ALCS airing on TBS.
Wednesday night's decisive NLCS Game 4 on TBS generated an average of 7.9 million total viewers and a 5.0 U.S. HH rating - peaking with an average of 8.6 million total viewers from 10:30-10:45 p.m. ET - to rank as the network's most-viewed NLCS Game 4 on record. The telecast won the night across all of cable television, based on metered market delivery. This years' NLCS Game 4 is up 99% in total viewers and 86% in U.S. HH rating over the network's ALCS Game 4 telecast last year (Kansas City/Baltimore, ALCS Game 4 - four million total viewers; 2.7 U.S. HH rating). Locally, the telecast delivered an 18.9 HH rating in Chicago and an 18.8 HH rating in New York.
Turner's TV Everywhere platforms also delivered record-setting numbers this postseason including more than 63 million minutes consumed, an increase of 60% over last year. Live streaming across the platforms was also up 126% in unique visits during the postseason and 74% in video streams. Social media impressions are up 338% collectively across Twitter and Facebook for Bleacher Report MLB social accounts over last year.
Fox Sports Struggles After Big Game 1
While TBS has hit record highs, Fox finds itself on the opposite end of the spectrum thanks largely a matchup featuring the small-market Kansas City Royals and Canadian market Toronto Blue Jays.
Game 5 of the Royals/Blue Jays American League Championship Series drew 2.6 million viewers on Fox Sports 1 Wednesday afternoon, down 47% from Cardinals/Giants last year (4.9M) and down 70% from Red Sox/Tigers on FOX in 2013 (8.6M), both of which aired on Thursday nights. The Blue Jays' win ranks as the least-watched LCS telecast ever in the U.S., falling slightly below the previous mark set by Game 4 of the series the previous day (from 2.60M to 2.58M). The Royals/Blue Jays series has already generated the three smallest LCS audiences ever, with Saturday's Game 2 ranking third (2.7M).
Game 1, however, posted a 4.0/8 household rating/share with 6.5 million viewers, up 29% in rating and 30% in audience compared to the FOX/FS1 telecast of NLCS Game 1 last year (3.1/6, 5.0 million combined) and out-rating every LCS game played a year ago. Locally, Kansas City led all markets with a massive 41.3 rating.
Meanwhile, MLB Network is drumming up is best-ever audiences for the MLB Postseason. The channel reports that so far, total day audiences are up 23% vs 2014, with 30% audience growth for live editions of MLB Tonight before and after every Postseason game.
Wolverines Heartbreak Pays Off Big for ESPN
In week 7, ESPN televised its third most-watched regular season college football Saturday ever and its best October Saturday ever (dating back to 1994) led by No. 7 Michigan State at No. 12 Michigan (3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN), which averaged 7,398,000 viewers throughout the telecast and 11,549,000 viewers for the game's final play (7:15 p.m. - 7:24 p.m.).
The Spartans-Wolverines game was college football's most-watched game last weekend across all networks and ranks as ESPN's most-viewed 3:30 p.m. game ever (records date back to 1990). The game was ESPN's most- watched October college football game in more than 20 years and second best overall, trailing only Florida State at Miami on October 8, 1994 (7,677,000 viewers). In addition, the game was WatchESPN's second-most-streamed regular season college football game ever, with 167,000 average minute impressions on top of the TV audience and a total of 697,000 unique viewers accounting for 39,424,000 minutes viewed
No. 8 Florida at No. 6 LSU (7 p.m. on ESPN) was the top prime-time game and second-most-watched college football game of week 7 across all networks, averaging 6,778,000 viewers. Additionally, the matchup was WatchESPN's third-best college football game ever and second-most watched of the week, adding 146,000 average minute impressions on top of the TV audience and a total of 694,000 unique viewers accounting for 32,982,000 minutes viewed.
ESPN averaged 3,431,000 viewers on Saturday, Oct. 10, into Sunday, Oct. 11 (6 a.m. to 6 a.m.), making it the third most-watched regular season college football Saturday and the most-watched October Saturday ever (dating back to 1994)
ABC Saturday Night Football Penn State at No.1 Ohio State (8 p.m.) averaged 5,867,000 viewers, the third-most-watched gam
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
28/11/2025
Nadia Fall attends the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Brides at the Egyptian Theatre on January 24, 2025, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Donyale West/...
28/11/2025
It's easy to ignore those little red update available badges. But when it ...
28/11/2025
WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for the December Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, December 18, 2025 ...
28/11/2025
The Professional Fighters League is looking to super-serve fans of mixed martial...
28/11/2025
Fubo has released in beta on select Roku devices a new feature that lets users display up to four simultaneous streams at once....
28/11/2025
The WNBA playoffs and Week 4 of the NFL regular season highlight the list of live sports events airing on television this weekend....
28/11/2025
The 32nd class of honorees to the B+C Hall of Fame took to the stage at New York's Ziegfeld Ballroom on September 26 for a gala induction event. Click below...
28/11/2025
We hold in our hands the very last Next Text for Next TV, the weekly back-and-fo...
28/11/2025
DirecTV said it made a deal with EchoStar to buy EchoStar's video businesses, including satellite-TV provider Dish TV and virtual MVPD Sling TV, for $1 plus...
28/11/2025
The Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame, the premier industry event paying tribute to the influencers, innovators and shining lights of broadcast, cable and streami...
28/11/2025
Friday 28 November 2025
Sky Sports x Slawn drop limited-edition football jersey...
28/11/2025
Rohde & Schwarz shows resilience in a challenging environment, revenue exceeds t...
28/11/2025
Unwrapped: The Toy Show Appeal - airing this Sunday on RT One and RT Player- s...
27/11/2025
LONDON Vizrt has added several AI-driven advanced features offering improved speed, intelligence and accuracy in the newest version of its media asset managemen...
27/11/2025
Prime Video has launched AI-powered video season recaps in a beta version for select English-language Prime Original series in the U.S., a move Amazon is callin...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's Raat Akeli Hai: The Bansal Murders Marks a Grand...
27/11/2025
27 Nov 2025
GSMA brings M360 Eurasia 2026 to Samarkand in partnership with VEON...
27/11/2025
Tahar Rahim and Izuka Hoyle star in the gripping six-part Sky Original from Acad...
27/11/2025
Thursday 27 November 2025
Sky Arts Reveals the Nation's Greatest Basslines - and Queen Reign Supreme
The UK's most iconic basslines have been revealed...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things 5': Prepare for One Last Adventure With O...
27/11/2025
The media industry has a paradox at its core. It's an industry built on light, color and imagination, yet behind the scenes, it's powered by one of the ...
27/11/2025
Rating reflects rating progress across areas including policies, diversity & inclusion, health & safety and Net Zero leadership
Winchester, UK, 27 November 202...
27/11/2025
What are the industry standards for Retail Media? Kathryn explains that certification is based on the IAB Europe Retail Media Measurement Standards and the IAB ...
27/11/2025
World champion boxer and Irish sporting icon Katie Taylor will be in studio this...
27/11/2025
Roblox, one of the world's most popular online gaming platforms for primary ...
27/11/2025
Black Friday is leveling up. Get ready to score one of the biggest deals of the season - 50% off the first three months of a new GeForce NOW Ultimate membership...
26/11/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Prime Video EP Mike Muriano Previews Massive Black Friday Slate Fe...
26/11/2025
A cinematic snow sculpture at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Randall Michelson...
26/11/2025
Book podcasts are booming. On Spotify, you'll find everything from celebrity book clubs to deep dives with bestselling authors. And in markets where audiobo...
26/11/2025
Mumbai, November 24, 2025: In a first-of-its-kind initiative, JioStar, in collab...
26/11/2025
LONDON Factual content producer ITN Productions has launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins....
26/11/2025
MIAMI TelevisaUnivision said it struck a new multiyear distribution agreement with YouTube TV that includes distribution of TelevisaUnivision's U.S. network...
26/11/2025
OpenDrives, Inc., a leader in software-defined data storage and data services, today announced the launch of the Atlas Corporate Creative Solution. This new Atl...
26/11/2025
Disguise, the industry-leading company powering the world's biggest live performances, is partnering with pioneering LED wall manufacturer DVS to give atten...
26/11/2025
HighField AI, the pioneer in agentic and multimodal automation for broadcast and media production, today announced the expansion of its global channel partner n...
26/11/2025
As high-stakes Premier League fixtures approach and additional premium content launches, with MONO positioning themselves to dominate Thailand's sports stre...
26/11/2025
Hosting a wide variety of events from high-intensity NHL games to complex live music concerts and major entertainment productions, Montreal's 21,000 capacit...
26/11/2025
Vizrt, the leader in live production technology revolutionizing viewer engagement and experience, releases AI-driven advances focusing on speed, intelligence, a...
26/11/2025
ITN Productions, an award-winning factual content producer, today launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins. Responsible for delivering a leading...
26/11/2025
Ikegami reports ongoing advances throughout 2025 in developing and delivering coordinated television production solutions that maximize quality, versatility and...
26/11/2025
Following the Nov. 21 blackout of NBCUniversal channels on Fubo, the two sides have traded barbs about their inability to reach a new carriage deal....
26/11/2025
LONDON As TV sports rights become increasingly important for both broadcasters and streamers, Ampere Analysis predicts global investment in the genre will surpa...
26/11/2025
LOS ANGELES Vubiquity said it has achieved the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Media & Entertainment Competency as part of the AWS Partner Network (APN). This designa...
26/11/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement Bureau said it has entered into a consent decree with Comcast calling for the cable company t...
26/11/2025
Berklee Named to the Hollywood Reporters Top Music Schools List The publication highlights the college's screen scoring program, industry partnerships, and ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
Animated Series Love Through a Prism' Casts New Light on ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
NALIP Unveils Fifth Cohort of Director Incubator
Social Impact
26 November 2025
United States
Link copied to clipboard
The National Assoc...
26/11/2025
YouView Achieves Greenly Gold Certification for SustainabilityNov 26, 2025
YouView is proud to announce a Gold Certification award from Greenly for our perform...
TBS saw record viewership for the National League side of the MLB Postseason, while Fox Sports 1 is struggling in the ALCS without a big-market U.S. team in the mix. On the gridiron, Michigan's heartbreaking loss to Michigan State delivered record numbers for ESPN, while the NFL on NBC and CBS are on pace for the best seasons in decades.
