Messi's appearance in the US Open Cup semi-final adds rocket fuel to the tournament's viewership.
Highlights, Lowlights:
• The non-big 6 PL matchup between West Ham and Brighton pulls close to 1m on the heels of an early morning College Football match in Ireland (Notre Dame v Navy).
• The US Open Cup posts 1m in what is certainly the best viewership number in the 100+ year history of the tournament. As with the Leagues Cup, this is all Messi providing the interest. Of course it is great exposure, but history has proven that it doesn't stick.
• Liga MX returned to its normal schedule last week and so did Univision's number. It's difficult to take the temperature on how fans feel about the return of the league. I think US fans are happy about the Leagues Cup finally being over.
• MLS posts its first FOX game in a while, 320k and posting lows in each demo A18-49, A18-34, A25-54. Of course, Season Pass is peeling off younger viewership but the Premier League simulcasts on Peacock and their younger demo ratings remain comparable to Liga MX. Then there's also the US Open Cup demo ratings for the game on Telemundo and their younger demos are strong as well (in comparison to the older demos).
• So, I don't know exactly how many or who is watching MLS regular season games on Season Pass. I still don't see evidence of much interest in individual games. That said, with all the games kicking off around the same time (sans the FOX games) it is likely that Apple sells ads on the cumulative viewership in different windows.
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| US TV Viewership: AUG 21 - 27 |
| | | |
| PREMIER LEAGUE | | |
| LIGA MX (Mexican Soccer) | | |
| MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER | | |
| | | |
| Viewers (000) | Event/Game | Network | Date |
| 1,006 | US-OPEN-CUP-W-: CINCINNATI VS. MIAMI CF | TEL | 8/23 |
| 960 | NBC PREMIER LEAGUE: WEST HAM AT BRIGHTON | NBC | 8/26 |
| 945 | LIGA MX SAT: AMERICA VS LEON +T | UNI | 8/26 |
| 820 | LIGA MX WED: AMERICA VS NECAXA +T | UNI | 8/23 |
| 735 | LIGA MX PT SUN: UNAM VS TIGRES UANL +T | UNI | 8/27 |
| 689 | PREMIER LEAGUE L: LIVERPOOL/NEWCASTLE | USA | 8/27 |
| 687 | LIGA MX PT SUN 2: MONTERREY VS CRUZ AZUL | UNI | 8/27 |
| 515 | PREMIER LEAGUE L: FULHAM/ARSENAL | USA | 8/26 |
| 473 | LIGA MX EF SAT: ATLAS VS TOLUCA +T | UNI | 8/26 |
| 467 | PREMIER LG LIVE STUDIO: | USA | 8/26 |
| 414 | PREMIER LEAGUE L: MAN CITY/SHEFFIELD | USA | 8/27 |
| 352 | PREMIER LG LIVE STUDIO: | USA | 8/27 |
| 350 | PREMIER LEAGUE GOAL ZONE: | USA | 8/27 |
| 320 | MLS SOCCER-SUN: MINNESOTA VS SEATTLE | FOX | 8/27 |
| 313 | PREMIER LEAGUE L: TOTTENHAM/BOURNEMOUTH | USA | 8/26 |
| 311 | LIGA MX SAT: AMERICA / LEON | TUDN | 8/26 |
| 300 | LIGA PREMIER: : NEWCASTLE V. LIVERPOOL | TEL | 8/27 |
| 272 | PREMIER LG LIVE STUDIO: | USA | 8/26 |
| 220 | LIGA MX PT SUN: UNAM / TIGRES | TUDN | 8/27 |
| 174 | LIGA MX: SANTOS VS GUADALAJARA | FOXD | 8/26 |
| 169 | PREMIER LG LIVE STUDIO: | USA | 8/27 |
| 118 | PREMIER LG LIVE STUDIO: | USA | 8/26 |
Sources: Nielsen Data via Sports Media Watch, Spoiler TV
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Note: My primary source for this data has changed from ShowBuzzDaily to a combination of Sports Media Watch and Spoiler TV. My weekly report was previously posted on Wednesday, but now will be on Thursday (or Friday if there is a holiday). Bear with me while I get my hands around providing this data. Thank you.
