When a breaking news event develops, the networks with news coverage usually experience a significant boost in viewership. But what if the news was sports-centric? Would the cable sports outlets like ESPN achieve more ratings during a show like First Take? This was put to the test on the morning of Feb. 1 when future Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady announced his retirement.
Routinely, the studio programs of ESPN and FS1 get an increase each Monday from September thru February, as they recap and analyze the prior weekend’s slate of football action. As for this instance involving Brady, though, ESPN mostly declined while FS1 remained relatively steady. The following are their notable programs from Feb. 1 and their respective percentage margins each from their Wednesday averages in January (Jan. 4-25):
- SportsCenter (ESPN, 7-8 a.m. ET): 188,000 viewers (-17%); 83,000 adults 25-54 (-26%)
- Get Up (ESPN, 8-10 a.m. ET): 393,000 viewers (-3%); 191,000 adults 25-54 (-2%)
- First Take (ESPN, 10 a.m.-noon ET): 524,000 viewers (+3%); 254,000 adults 25-54 (+11%)
- SportsCenter (ESPN, noon-1 p.m. ET): 341,000 viewers (-12%); 159,000 adults 25-54 (-21%)
- NFL Live (ESPN, 4-5 p.m. ET): 376,000 viewers (-17%); 169,000 adults 25-54 (-30%)
- Around the Horn (ESPN, 5-5:30 p.m. ET): 423,000 viewers (-12%); 192,000 adults 25-54 (-21%)
- Pardon the Interrogation (ESPN, 5:30-6 p.m. ET): 674,000 viewers (-8%); 270,000 adults 25-54 (-11%)
- SportsCenter (ESPN, 6-7 p.m. ET): 441,000 viewers (-10%); 209,000 adults 25-54 (-15%)
- Undisputed (FS1, 9:30 a.m.-noon ET): 199,000 viewers (+17%); 90,000 adults 25-54 (-5%)
- The Herd (FS1, noon-3 p.m. ET): 171,000 viewers (+5%); 69,000 adults 25-54 (-9%)
- First Things First (FS1, 3-4:30 p.m. ET): 138,000 viewers (-6%); 63,000 adults 25-54 (-3%)
Despite the Brady news, nearly all of ESPN’s daytime lineup were down from its Wednesday levels in January.
Only First Take saw an uptick on Feb. 1 but that might have been attributed to its featured guests, especially of interest in the New York area: the reunion of sports talk radio legends Mike Francesa and Christopher “Mad Dog” Russo (aka Mike and the Mad Dog, the weekday afternoon show on New York’s WFAN station from 1989-2008 that served as a template for the nation’s sports radio programs since the 1990’s). Russo has been Stephen A. Smith’s Wednesday co-host on First Take since February 2022.
Many questioned if a Mike and the Mad Dog reunion was of interest to viewers outside the New York metro. After looking at the results, and seeing decreases throughout the morning but an increase on First Take, its safe to say the answer was yes.
There were slight total viewer increases for two programs over at FS1, but not enough to surpass the 200,000 mark for any of its daytime shows.
Several factors may have been in play for the relative apathy on the sports networks despite the announcement of (perhaps) the greatest player in NFL history. Brady had first retired in Feb. 2022, but reversed his decision several weeks later after Buccaneers ownership “transitioned” coach Bruce Arians up to their front office (there were some public signs Arians and Brady did not see eye-to-eye in offense philosophy, even though it produced a Super Bowl championship.)
In addition, Brady’s notoriety transcends the sports world so the retirement news were reported on all the network morning shows — broadcast and cable — as well.
