How might pro sports bounce back?
During the pandemic, the altered scheduling generally has led to dips in viewership. But the comeback for sports could bring surprises.
A big screen displays fans watching a Premier League soccer match between Leeds United and Southampton in Leeds, Britain, Feb. 23.
Reuters
In mid-February, two National Hockey League games were played in the great outdoors at scenic Lake Tahoe on a temporary rink. The teams battled it out surrounded by mountains, trees, and a spectacular lake – but no fans in stands.
The players agreed they loved the venue, just as predicted by Steve Mayer, the NHL’s chief content officer, in The New York Times. “Once the puck is dropped the players will feel a little like they’re playing back when they were kids, for the love of the game.”
The NHL has played games outdoors in the past but hoped the change would seem even more refreshing to fans watching on TV and cooped up inside during a pandemic. Future games in New York’s Central Park and on the National Mall in Washington remain a possibility.
Surprisingly, ratings for televised sports in the United States have been down during the pandemic, sometimes dramatically. The NHL suffered a 61% drop in viewers for its Stanley Cup Final. Viewers of the National Basketball Association Finals dropped 51%, and Major League Baseball’s World Series was its lowest rated, with a 30% dip from the previous year. Even this year’s Feb. 7 Super Bowl game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers was down 9% compared with 2020.
No one answer explains what’s happening. But a few hypotheses make sense to those who follow sports and media.
For one thing, in 2020 many sports had their seasons abbreviated or shifted to later in the year. By last fall professional baseball, football, hockey, soccer, and basketball were all available for viewing at the same time. Not to mention golf’s prestigious Masters Tournament, pushed back from its traditional spring tee time.
With fewer workers commuting, that time separating the workday from relaxing in front of TV at home disappeared.
“People’s behaviors are shifting,” Senior Vice President Daniel Cohen at Octagon, a sports marketing agency, told SportsPro. “If you’re going to be working from home from 8 to 6:30 every day, are you going to turn on that baseball game or are you going to go for your bike ride now?” s
One other reason: Viewers’ time for sports may have been squeezed by big news on COVID-19 and the 2020 presidential election. Catching up on highlights via a phone app might have sufficed.
Trying to figure out how professional sports will adjust during this year presents a challenge. Most pro leagues’ financial models include big contributions from ticket and concession sales to live attendees, not stadiums populated by cardboard cutouts of fans. If a quick return to something approaching normal attendance isn’t possible, the ramifications could be severe.
In one bright spot outside the U.S., home TV viewing of Britain’s Premier League soccer matches jumped 13% this past year, caused in part by the closure of pubs and other traditional viewing venues. A recent showdown between rivals Manchester United and Liverpool yielded a record audience.
As with all sports, the matches provide “so many new stories to enjoy, so many more scores to argue over,” soccer podcaster Musa Okwonga told the Financial Times.
Groups of fans now are creating “watchalongs,” turning down the audio on their sets and then offering their own commentary to friends via social media.
Fans may be stuck at home for a while more, but they will eventually find a way to express their joy of sports. The letdowns of the past year could result in an innovative comeback later this year.