Ratings Roundup: MLB at Field of Dreams Hits New 16-Year Benchmark With 5.903 Million Viewers By SVG Staff
Thursday, August 19, 2021 - 6:45 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
Ratings roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press releases and reports around the industry. In this week's edition, MLB at Field of Dreams delivered best baseball viewership since 2005, NASCAR at the Brickyard hits a new low, and more.
MLB at Field of Dreams Delivers Best Viewership Since 2005 5,903,000 viewers watched the inaugural MLB at Field of Dreams broadcast, featuring the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox, on Fox and Fox Deportes.
The game peaked with 6,094,000 viewers from 8:45 to 9 p.m. ET on Fox and ranks as the most-watched regular season baseball game on any network since 2005 (5,090,000).
The contest was the most-streamed regular season baseball game in Fox Sports history. The top five markets were:
Chicago (11.2/25)
New York (6.6/14)
St. Louis (6.0/13)
Hartford (5.6/12)
Kansas City (5.6/12) (Twitter)
NASCAR Brickyard Ratings Hit New Low Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race from the Brickyard road course averaged a 1.8 rating and 2.83 million viewers on NBC, marking the lowest rated and least-watched Cup Series race from the Brickyard on record (excludes rainouts).
A.J. Allmendinger's win, which peaked with 3.5 million viewers, declined a third in ratings and 35% in viewership from last year, when the race was run over July 4 weekend and one of the first marquee sporting events in months (2.7, 4.34M). The share (the percentage of television homes viewing the race out of the number of homes with television in use) was down just 4%. HUT (households using televisions) levels on Sunday were down a whopping 30% from last year's race date.
Ratings and viewership also dropped 5% from 2019, when the race took place in September and aired opposite NFL games (1.9, 2.97M).
The green flag dropped at 1:27 PM ET, marking the earliest start for any non-rain delayed race since 2017. Due to various delays, the race was punted off of the NBC broadcast network before its conclusion. An hour of bonus coverage on NBCSN - which overlapped some with the NBC broadcast - averaged 693,000, with a half-hour of post-race coverage considerably higher at 1.38 million.
Notably, the Brickyard ranks as the least-watched Cup Series race on broadcast television this season (12 total). It averaged fewer viewers than this year's July 4 weekend race at Road America (3.08M). (SportsMediaWatch)
NFL Network's preseason opener tops all of its 2019 games Last Thursday's Washington-Patriots NFL preseason game averaged a 1.0 rating and 1.75 million viewers on NFL Network, marking the outlet's largest preseason audience since 2018 (keep in mind there were no preseason games last year). The game, which faced tough competition from the competing MLB Field of Dreams game on FOX, increased a tick in ratings and 17% in viewership from the comparable window in 2019 (Jets-Giants: 0.9, 1.50M).
The following night's Bills-Lions game drew a 0.8 (+4%) and 1.30 million (+6%), with the Cowboys-Cardinals nightcap at a 0.75 and 1.25 million.
Shifting to the weekend, Browns-Jaguars (Trevor Lawrence's NFL debut) averaged a 0.9 and 1.67 million Saturday night. Broncos-Vikings drew a 1.0 and 1.63 million and Dolphins-Bears a 1.0 and 1.59 million earlier in the day. The Chargers-Rams nightcap pulled a 0.6 and 1.12 million. NFL Network carried only one game on the comparable day in 2019, a Cowboys-49ers matchup that drew a 1.0 and 1.66 million.
Panthers-Colts pulled a 0.7 and 1.20 million on Sunday. There was no comparable window last preseason. (SportsMediaWatch)
WNBA Hits New Nine-Year High Sunday's Storm-Sky WNBA regular season game averaged a 0.47 rating and 755,000 viewers on ABC, marking the league's largest regular season audience in nine years (Mercury-Lynx: 804K). The previous high was set by ABC's previous game last month, 643,000 for Aces-Wings.
Seattle's overtime win comfortably outdrew its lead-in, Barcelona-Real Sociedad in La Liga's U.S. broadcast network debut (0.25, 465K). The margin was much closer in adults 18-49, where the WNBA topped La Liga by just 5,000 viewers (175K to 170K). (SportsMediaWatch)
Premier League's Opening Weekend Is Most-Watched in Six Years The opening weekend of the English Premier League averaged 628,000 viewers across NBC's various TV and digital platforms, the most-watched opening weekend since 2015 (694K). Liverpool-Norwich led the way with a 0.52 rating and 912,000 viewers on NBC Saturday, followed by a 0.43 and 757,000 for Manchester City-Tottenham on NBCSN Sunday. Including additional streaming data not tracked by Nielsen, the latter match averaged 818,000 viewers - the second-largest opening weekend match ever on cable, behind Manchester United-Chelsea two years ago (1.01M). (SportsMediaWatch)
ESPN Digital Records 10th Straight Best Month with 99.4 Million U.S. Users in June ESPN Digital reached 99.4 million users in the month of June, its best June on record. ESPN was up 24% year-over-year in users and 132% year-over-year in minutes. Most notable traffic drivers included the MLB regular season, NBA playoffs, Cricket, Euro 2020 and the Mayweather v. Paul fight.
ESPN Digital is averaging 98.5 million users per month in 2021, making this the best first half year on record. June marks the 40th straight month that ESPN ranked number one in the U.S. digital sports category for monthly unique visitors.
The ESPN App saw 21 million users in June, more than two-and-a-half times the size of the next closest competitor. This marks the best June on record for the ESPN App. The ESPN App total minutes were also up 261% year-over-year.
ESPN Social ranked number one in social actions across Facebo
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...
Ratings Roundup: MLB at Field of Dreams Hits New 16-Year Benchmark With 5.903 Million Viewers By SVG Staff 
