NBC Sports scores with English soccer coverage
STAMFORD — Last Sunday saw Manchester City clinch its second straight title, in one of the most gripping title races in the history of the Premier League, and saw NBC Sports Group solidify the growing audience for its coverage of England’s top soccer division.
NBC Sports’ programming for the 2018-19 season reached more than 35 million viewers across TV and digital platforms, according to data released this week by media-tracking firms Nielsen Co. and Adobe Analytics. An average of about 457,000 watched Sunday’s simultaneous group of matches, up 2 percent from 2017-18.
“This season was a massive success; our mission is to forge a lasting connection with our audience through continued collaboration, innovation and an unwavering commitment to provide expansive and authentic coverage,” said Pierre
Moossa, NBC Sports’ Premier League coordinating producer. “It first starts with the competition. It was one of the most compelling and memorable seasons to date both on and off the pitch.”
The 2018-19 campaign marked the eighth time in the league’s 27-year history that the title winner was decided on the last day of the season. Manchester City prevailed by one point over runner-up Liverpool to seal its fourth Premier League championship.
Manchester City’s and Liverpool’s games last Sunday — carried, respectively, on the NBCSN cable channel and NBC broadcast channel — averaged a total audience of 1.3 million, the highest-ever U.S. viewership for the top two matches on the final day of a Premier League season.
Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Manchester United on March 10 ranked as the most-watched game of the season and second most-watched live Premier League match in U.S. history, attracting an average of 1.68 million viewers across all platforms.
At the same time, NBC Sports continues to grow its digital audience. On NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app, viewers consumed a record 879 million live minutes in the past season.
In its six seasons carrying the Premier League, NBC Sports has reached an average of 34.6 million TV viewers each season. In comparison, a total of about 13.3 million watched in 2012-13 on the league’s then-carriers, which were ESPN, ESPN2 and Fox Soccer.
Washington, D.C. ranked as the top local market for 2018-19 games shown on NBC and NBCSN. Hartford was the highest Connecticut market, placing No. 7.
NBC Sports’ new Premier League programming in 201819 included documentaries, YouTube shows, a matchprediction app and partnerships with United Kingdombased Sky Sports.
To further support the league’s growth in the U.S., NBC Sports and the Premier League hosted three fan festivals this past season: in Washington D.C., Manhattan and Boston. The Boston gathering, a two-day event in late March, attracted more than 12,000 soccer fans.