CINCINNATI, Nov. 7, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- The first season of National Women's Soccer League
on ION broadcasts – matches and studio shows – reached more than
20.5 million total unique viewers, including 13.5 viewers unique to
ION.
Scripps Sports televised Saturday night doubleheaders on ION
throughout the season, a total of 50 matches – more than any other
network – and 53 studio shows. ION was among the networks involved
in a landmark multi-year distribution agreement announced in
November 2023 that included CBS
Sports, ESPN and Prime Video.
ION, the only network to have a weekly studio show with
documentary-style features on players and coaches, delivered more
than 130 hours of NWSL content during the season. ION is a national
sports and entertainment broadcast network that reaches every U.S.
TV household over-the-air and on all major pay TV and connected TV
services. ION is owned by The E.W. Scripps Company (Nasdaq:
SSP).
Highlights of NWSL on ION Season 1*:
- ION delivered the largest female percentage audience of any
network (57% of the P25-54 audience, 55% of the P2+ audience).
- 50% of all NWSL viewers watched matches on ION, the
highest percentage of all linear broadcast partners.
- Matches drew an average audience of 145,000 P2+ per game with a
high of 234,000 on July 6 for the
Orlando-Kansas City match.
- NWSL matches on ION delivered more than 3.6 million hours of
viewing across free ad-supported television (FAST) channels,
including Roku, Samsung TV, LG, Vizio, Xumo, Plex, Amazon Fire TV
Channels, Pluto, CW and Tablo.
- Scripps Sports formed more than two dozen advertising
partnerships, including Capital One as presenting sponsor
of NWSL on ION Saturday Night soccer.
"NWSL fans consistently showed up to watch ION every week,"
Scripps Sports President Brian
Lawlor said. "It was an incredible first year. We expect to
continue growing the audience and helping the league grow its fan
base."
"Our matches on ION brought incredible NWSL content to fans
everywhere," said Brian Gordon, NWSL
senior vice president of broadcast. "Beyond the matches, the
ability to go in depth with our athletes and give them a platform
to amplify their own stories helped our fans grow an even deeper
affinity for the players, clubs and league. We are very proud of
our collaboration with Scripps Sports and look forward to
continuing our work together next season."
*Sources for data: Nielsen L+SD national panel one-minute
qualifier for reach. Data for NWSL+, Prime Video and Paramount+ is
not available.
Scripps media contact: Michael
Perry, (513) 259-4718, michael.perry@scripps.com
NWSL contact: Jennifer Levine, (917) 921-7806,
jlevine@nwslsoccer.com
Scripps Sports serves professional and college sports
leagues, conferences and teams with local market depth and national
broadcast reach. Scripps Sports currently has partnerships
with the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), the
National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the National Hockey League's
(NHL) 2024 Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, the 2023 Stanley
Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights, the new Utah Hockey Club and the
NCAA's Big Sky Conference. Scripps Sports is a division of The E.W.
Scripps Company (NASDAQ: SSP), a Fortune 1000 American media
company.
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SOURCE The E.W. Scripps Company