Networks Win Big With NFL Return

Author

Michael Beach
September 17, 2020

Big news: The NFL is back!

Why this matters #1: Last year, 41 of the top 50 shows on TV were NFL games.

Why this matters #2: The NFL makes up a huge share of live TV viewing.

Share of live/same-day viewing for the NFL (excluding Super Bowl) in 2019 according to MoffettNathanson:
1) Fox – 61%
2) CBS – 28%
3) ESPN – 28%
4) NBC – 27%

NFL average regular season viewership (YoY change) according to Sports Business Journal:
1) 2010 – 17.9M 
2) 2011 – 17.5M (↓ 2%)
3) 2012 – 16.6M (↓ 5%)
4) 2013 – 17.4M (↑ 5%)
5) 2014 – 17.6M (↑ 1%)
6) 2015 – 18.1M (↑ 3%)
7) 2016 – 16.5M (↓ 9%)
8) 2017 – 15.0M (↓ 9%)
9) 2018 – 15.8M (↑ 5%)
10) 2019 – 16.5M (↑ 5%)

Why this matters #3: The NFL accounts for a ton of ad revenue.

NFL advertising revenue by network (% of total) according to iSpot:
1) Fox – $2.0B (40%)
2) CBS – $1.5B (25%)
3) NBC – $1.5B (20%)
4) ESPN – $500M (20%)

2020 NFL media rights (% of total) according to Variety:
1) Monday Night Football (ESPN) – $1.9B (25%)
2) NFL Sunday Ticket (AT&T) – $1.5B (20%)
3) NFC Sunday afternoon (Fox) – $1.1B (14%)
4) AFC Sunday afternoon (CBS) – $1.0B (13%)
5) Sunday Night Football (NBC) – $950M (12%)
6) Thursday Night Football (Fox) – $660M (9%)
7) Digital and Streaming – $570M (7%)

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