It was a clean sweep for 98.5 The Sports Hub in the Boston sports radio ratings battle. According to Nielsen Audio, The Sports Hub finished first overall with an 11.9 share during the winter ratings book, while their sports radio rival WEEI finished fourth, earning a 6.4 among the targeted demo of men 25-54.
The Sports Hub already includes their stream in the number reported by Nielsen, while WEEI’s digital audience is calculated separately. But according to Chad Finn of The Globe, WEEI’s stream did not register a share during the winter ratings period, while their Providence-based simulcast on WVEI adds a 0.2 in the Boston market.
Beginning with morning drive, The Sports Hub’s Toucher and Rich finished first overall in the book with a 14.6, comfortably topping WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show. Still less than a year into his tenure hosting morning drive for WEEI, the longtime Boston radio personality finished second overall with a 9.2.
In middays, Zolak & Bertrand finished first with a 14.2, while WEEI’s Dale and Keefe finished fourth, garnering a 7.2 when including the stream and WVEI number. In afternoon drive, the Sports Hub maintained their dominance as Felger & Massarotti also finished first with a 14.6. Their Boston sports radio counterpart, OMF (Ordway, Merloni and Fauria) finished fourth for WEEI with a 5.8.
The evening timeslot was the lone weekday window that didn’t see The Sports Hub finish first overall. The Adam Jones Show, which airs from 6 – 11pm and includes Bruins and Celtics broadcasts, finished second with an 8.1. On WEEI, Mut at Night with Mike Mutnansky earned a 4.9 share, finishing fifth.
The winter ratings period extends from Jan. 2 through March 25, meaning most of the book took place before the COVID-19 pandemic forced live sports to shutdown March 11. Ratings during the spring book will likely decline as sports are paused and non-essential workers aren’t commuting during the morning and evening rush hours.
Sports may have stopped on March 11, but less than a week later, six-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady announced he was parting ways with the Patriots after more than two decades in New England. Shortly after, news broke that Brady was heading to Tampa Bay. Brady likely kept listeners locked in to Boston sports radio even though league shutdowns were underway.
Brandon Contes is a former reporter for BSM, now working for Awful Announcing. You can find him on Twitter @BrandonContes or reach him by email at Brandon.Contes@gmail.com.
