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NCAA Tournament Viewership Continues to Soar into New Heights

Posted by on Mar 23, 2014 17:10

The NCAA Tournament appears to have caught on with fans. When viewership goes up three straight days, you have a trend.

For Saturday’s 3rd round action which had an afternoon of three bad games, but then an evening of barnburners, CBS/Turner averaged 10 million total viewers for the eight games which was the best in 21 years, dating back to 1993. It’s also up 10% from last year’s average of 9.1 million for the same day last year.

CBS/Turner averaged a 6.1 rating with a 14 share. That is also up 5% from last year.

For the tournament, the CBS/Turner consortium is averaging 8.8 million viewers for the first five days and that’s up 7% from last year.

Overall, the ratings are averaging 5.7/13 up 6% from 2013’s numbers.

Here is the joint CBS/Turner announcement.

NCAA March Madness TBS-CBS-TNT-truTV2014 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship Delivering Highest Viewership in 23 Years

NCAA Tournament Viewership Up 7% Through First Five Days vs. 2013
Saturday’s Live Coverage Averaged 10 Million Viewers, Up 10% Over Last Year

Turner Sports and CBS Sports’ exclusive coverage of the 2014 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship – across TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV – is delivering its highest viewership in 23 years (since 1991, when the tournament expanded to four telecast windows for the entire day). Through the first five days, the NCAA Tournament is averaging 8.8 million viewers, up 7% through the same period last year (8.2 million viewers), based on Nielsen Fast Nationals. The tournament is averaging a 5.7/13 U.S. HH rating/share, up 6% over a 5.4/12 U.S. HH rating/share to date in 2013.

Saturday’s live game coverage averaged 10 million viewers to register the most-viewed first Saturday of the NCAA Tournament in 21 years (since 1993). Viewership is up 10% over the comparable day last year (9.1 million viewers). The corresponding 6.1/14 U.S. HH rating/share is up 5% over a 5.8/12 U.S. HH rating in 2013.

Saturday’s coverage showed viewership growth among the telecast windows.

  • The first daytime telecast window averaged 5.6 million viewers, up 10% over an average of 5.1 million viewers last year. It is the highest viewership for the game window since 2011.
  • The second daytime telecast window averaged 7.4 million viewers, up 1% compared with an average of 7.3 million viewers last year.
  • The first primetime telecast window averaged 13.8 million viewers to garner the highest viewership for this game window in 23 years (since 1991). The window is up 27% over an average of 10.9 million viewers last year.
  • The second primetime telecast window averaged 13.2 million viewers to register the highest viewership for the game window in 21 years (since 1993). The window is up 5% over an average of 12.6 million viewers in 2013.

Source: Nielsen Media Research, Fast Nationals, Live +SD data stream through Round 2 of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. 3/18/14 to 03/22/14 vs. 03/19/13 to 03/23/13. 2013, 2012 and 2011 averages based on weighted average of 4 telecast gross across CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV. Historical audiences, CBS 1991 through 2005 based on Live data.

And there you have it.

About Ken Fang

Ken has been covering the sports media in earnest at his own site, Fang's Bites since May 2007 and at Awful Announcing since March 2013. He provides a unique perspective having been an award-winning radio news reporter in Providence and having worked in local television. Fang celebrates the three Boston Red Sox World Championships in the 21st Century, but continues to be a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan.

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