October 16, 2024

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The NFL was beating its incredible 2024 viewership numbers through five weeks. In Week 6, the trend was broken, as ratings fell during most windows. We go through two key reasons for the decline and whether numbers will rebound this coming week.

— David Rumsey [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]], and Colin Salao [[link removed]]

NFL TV Ratings Down in Week 6 As Chiefs Rest, Cowboys Wilt [[link removed]]

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The NFL has a big weekend of games coming up—including Sean Payton’s return to New Orleans and a Super Bowl LVIII rematch (Chiefs at 49ers)—that the league will be counting on to drive big TV audiences after a second consecutive rating dip this season.

After five weeks of the NFL’s regular season, game broadcasts were averaging 17.5 million viewers [[link removed]], up 1% from 2023. But in Week 6, the Chiefs didn’t play, the Cowboys got blown out, and most of the NFL’s broadcast partners suffered as a result.

NFL Network’s coverage of Jaguars-Bears from London and the early Sunday afternoon slot on CBS were the only two TV windows to outperform their 2023 Week 6 counterparts. The rest were down year over year:

49ers-Seahawks on Amazon Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football was down 5%. Fox’s 1 p.m. ET games were down 13%. Lions-Cowboys drew 24.06 million viewers on Fox, down 8% from Eagles-Jets in 2023. NBC’s Bengals-Giants matchup was the least-watched Sunday Night Football broadcast since 2020 with 15.44 million viewers. The 17.3 million viewers for Bills-Jets on Monday Night Football was down from 19.64 million for Cowboys-Chargers last year, but still the second-largest Week 6 MNF audience since 2000.

The NFL has yet to release official year-over-year viewership numbers through Week 6. (All figures above are courtesy of Sports Media Watch [[link removed]].)

Mahomes to the Rescue?

The Cowboys (3–3 and winless at home) are on a much-needed bye week, but Fox gets the new TV king, Kansas City [[link removed]], against the 49ers on Sunday afternoon, with San Francisco (3–3) looking for revenge against the unbeaten Chiefs, who beat Brock Purdy & Co. to win their second consecutive Lombardi Trophy in February. Last season, MNF got a Super Bowl LVII rematch, and that Eagles-Chiefs game drew 29 million viewers—at the time the most-watched game of the 2023 season.

Week 7 kicks off with the Broncos visiting the Saints on Thursday night. Prime Video is averaging 13.98 million viewers for TNF games this season, up 18% over the 2023 full-season average.

TUNED IN

NFL’s Next Big Play? Eyeing a Billion-Dollar Global Rights Deal

The NFL is exploring a multibillion-dollar international rights package tied to its expanding slate of global games, sources tell Front Office Sports senior writer Michael McCarthy. The league could add more than $1 billion in annual revenue and extend the Sunday schedule with a morning window. Insiders suggest the NFL may even consider hosting a Super Bowl overseas.

Read more of McCarthy’s exclusive here [[link removed]].

You can also subscribe to our new “Tuned In” sports media newsletter [[link removed]], which will arrive in your inbox twice weekly.

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DSG Seeks Emergency Approval for FanDuel Naming-Rights Deal [[link removed]]

Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

The bankrupt Diamond Sports Group, after months of being on the receiving end of league broadsides to act with much more speed, has now issued its own urgent request to aid an attempted reorganization.

The regional sports network operator has filed an emergency motion with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for approval of a long-expected naming-rights deal with FanDuel [[link removed]]. The pact with the sportsbook operator will give FanDuel naming rights over the portfolio of networks and replace Bally Sports, as that pact expires at the end of the Major League Baseball season.

As part of the deal, FanDuel will gain a 5% equity stake in DSG, with performance-based warrants to acquire another 5%. DSG is also moving to keep the financial terms under seal, but it said the agreement contains “a significant rights fee payment and certain media and advertising spending commitments.” DSG is also set to gain some content currently shown on FanDuel TV, while FanDuel is incentivized to help increase DSG’s subscriber base.

Though DSG also considered five other potential naming-rights partners, the company saw a “high degree of alignment between the debtors’ RSN business and FanDuel’s online gaming business and target customers.”

Turning the Tables

Beyond a straightforward naming-rights deal, though, there is significant time urgency surrounding the entire DSG request to the court. If the pact is not approved by Monday, FanDuel can walk away without penalty. Additionally, DSG is characterizing the agreement as a fundamental pillar of its reorganization, particularly as it approaches a scheduled Nov. 14 court date to have a plan confirmed to emerge from bankruptcy.

“Rebranding the RSNs now—at the beginning of the 2024–2025 NBA and NHL seasons—is an important near-term business need and also a critical component of the debtors’ overall reorganization efforts,” DSG said in a court filing. “The debtors believe that the agreements with FanDuel … will provide incremental revenue and advantageously position the debtors’ reorganized business for future growth in a rapidly changing industry.

“Any delay in entry of an order approving the FanDuel term sheet may damage the debtors’ brand value with sports fans and disrupt the reorganization efforts at a critical juncture,” the filing continued.

That plea for immediate action, however, directly counters MLB’s long-held frustration with DSG regarding its local baseball rights. Just last week, the league again pressed the company to disclose its broadcast plans for 2025 [[link removed]] to allow affected teams to make alternate broadcast plans, if needed. Before reaching contract renewals with DSG in August [[link removed]], both the NBA and NHL levied similar complaints about the company.

DSG’s petition to the court also disclosed that the initial term of the FanDuel agreement runs only to April 30, with an automatic, multiyear extension should the company succeed in its reorganization.

STATUS REPORT One Up, Two Down, One Push

Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Georgia Tech ⬆ The Yellow Jackets are moving their 2025 game against Georgia to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home of the NFL’s Falcons. The team is receiving a $10 million guarantee from the stadium’s owners, AMB Sports and Entertainment, to host the game, which Georgia Tech athletic director J Batt called “a transformative lift for Tech athletics.” Earlier this year, the school announced it raised a record $78 million in athletics funding [[link removed]] during the fiscal year ending in June 2024.

Chicago Sports Network ⬇ The regional sports network, which launched Oct. 1 [[link removed]], has faced early headwinds as it has not secured carriage agreements with Comcast—the top cable provider in the area—as well as streaming services Hulu, FuboTV, and YouTube TV. Blackhawks chairman Danny Wirtz told the Chicago Sun-Times he is “disappointed” with the situation [[link removed]]. “I acknowledge that, as we’re doing this interview, it’s not where we want [it] to be,” Wirtz said. He and Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf are part-owners of CHSN.

Rays ⬇ The damage to the roof of Tropicana Field caused by Hurricane Milton is too severe for the team to start the 2025 season at home [[link removed]], according to the Tampa Bay Times. It is still unclear where the team will play its home games—and just how long they will be displaced—but the report indicated the team hopes to answer those questions in the coming weeks. The Rays are set to build a new stadium [[link removed]] adjacent to their current home, which will open in 2028.

Nike ⬆⬇ Caitlin Clark, who said earlier this month she intends to spend a lot of her offseason playing golf, was photographed in custom Nike Infinity Tour 2 golf shoes [[link removed]] while on the course. The Indiana Fever guard’s new kicks bring up the question of when the Swoosh intends to drop a signature shoe for the WNBA’s biggest draw—with whom the brand signed an eight-year, $28 million contract [[link removed]] earlier this year.

SPONSORED BY UBS

A New Era of Naming Rights

In the latest installment of our Future of Sports [[link removed]] series, presented by UBS, we discuss the evolving landscape of sports venue sponsorships and naming rights. This engaging conversation features industry leaders discussing the trends, strategies, and innovations shaping this dynamic space. From immersive on-site partnerships to media-driven brand visibility, we explore how venues and brands collaborate to create memorable experiences and maximize value.

Key sessions cover the shift to fully integrated marketing partnerships, the race to elevate fan experiences, and the broader economic and community impact of major sports venue partnerships. Don’t miss this opportunity [[link removed]] to gain valuable insights and learn from key players shaping the future of naming rights in sports.

Watch now [[link removed]].

Conversation Starters The Hornets have released renderings for their future performance center, which will open by the 2026–2027 season and include 100,000 square feet of training, practice, and recovery space. Take a look [[link removed]]. The host cities of the next four Super Bowls have been finalized after the NFL announced Atlanta as the host of Super Bowl LXII in 2028. Check out the list [[link removed]]. The University of Southern California is selling a VIP experience worth at least $1,450 where fans can run onto the field alongside Trojans football players. A Penn State fan ran out with USC athletes when the two schools faced off Saturday. Watch it here [[link removed]]. Editors’ Picks Breanna Stewart Is Making a LeBron-Style Bet on the WNBA [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]Stewart won’t commit to a long-term deal yet. McCarthy: Jerry Jones Made Himself Look Small in Radio Tirade [[link removed]]by Michael McCarthy [[link removed]]The Cowboys owner seemingly threatened hosts on the team’s radio station in Dallas. Adidas Posts Early Earnings Surprise on Samba Wave [[link removed]]by Lisa Scherzer [[link removed]]“They can’t keep surprising to the upside,” said one analyst. Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Written by David Rumsey [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Or Moyal [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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