Ratings for this past Monday night’s Vikings/Saints and Broncos/Chargers Monday Night Football games (DIS) have been released and viewership numbers have slipped once again. The early Vikings/Saints game drew 11.4 million fans, down from 13 million last year and 13.6 million in ’15; while the late game between the Broncos and Chargers saw 9.9 million people tune in, making it the least watched MNF game since 2007. MNF capped a bad weekend for all the NFL broadcast networks (CBS, FOXA, DIS, CMCSA), as 6 of the 7 game windows saw multi-year ratings lows.
Howie Long-Short: ESPN, for the first time, introduced a Spanish simulcast of MNF. The cable network will continue to use the ESPN Deportes feed on ESPN2, for the next 8 MNF games. The move to ESPN2 will give the broadcast reach as the cable network is in 88 million homes, compared to just the 5.9 million Hispanic households with ESPN Deportes. While the Spanish audience isn’t going to make up for league’s overall viewership issues, the live broadcasts will do better than the poker reruns ESPN2 ran opposite MNF last season.
Fan Marino: ESPN Deportes reporter Sergio Dipp went viral for his report during ESPN’s English broadcast. Real tough spot being asked to do a live stand-up in a second language. At least the guy had a sense of humor about it.
