Univision Deportes Network Ranks Among the Top Five Sports Networks on Primetime TV for the 20th Consecutive Month
NEW YORK – OCTOBER 3, 2017 – Univision Deportes Network (UDN), the No. 1 Spanish-language cable sports network, delivered exceptional primetime ratings and double-digit growth across key demos in Q3 2017. Year-over-year, Q3 2017 saw UDN up +50 percent among Total Viewers 2+ and +52 percent among Adults 18-49. For the fourth consecutive quarter, UDN is one of the top five most-watched sports networks, regardless of language, on primetime TV among Adults 18-49. This 3rd quarter saw UDN average 187,000 Total Viewers 2+ and 111,000 Adults 18-49, besting English-language competitors FOX Sports 1 and NBC Sports Network.
“Our exceptional programming coupled with our stellar teams continues to position UDN as the go-to fútbol destination for fans across the country. Univision Deportes’ strategic portfolio expansion and our commitment to our audience is what sets us apart from the rest. These results are a testament that we are the choice for soccer programming, regardless of language or platform,” said Juan Carlos Rodriguez, President of Univision Deportes.
Contributing to the growth is UCI’s multimedia sports division, Univision Deportes, whose stellar catalog of domestic and international soccer rights underscore the Company’s Q3 wins. Univision Deportes is home to some of the best live soccer broadcasts including Liga MX, Copa MX, CONCACAF Champions League, Bundesliga, and MLS. In 2018, Univision Deportes will also add the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League to its roster of marquee club soccer tournaments.
Liga MX
Driving the gains in Q3 is Univision Deportes broadcasting of Liga MX, the highly-rated soccer league in America, regardless of language. On UDN, telecast of Liga MX fútbol matches averaged 255,000 Total Viewers 2+ and 155,000 Adults 18-49, besting MLB on MLB Network by +14 percent and +167 percent, respectively.
MLS
Audience growth was also amplified by Univision Deportes’ broadcast of MLS fútbol matches on Univision networks. MLS on Univision’s flagship channels – Univision and UniMás – averaged 310,000 Total Viewers 2+ and 156,000 Adults 18-49, up +24 percent and +16 percent from the prior year, respectively. This has been the best quarter ever for MLS fútbol viewership on Univision Networks; in fact, Q3 2017 is on pace to be MLS’ most-viewed season ever on the leading Spanish-language networks. Additionally, telecast of MLS fútbol matches on Univision and UniMás have outperformed telecast of the MLS matches on FOX Sports 1 by double-digit margins among Total Viewers 2+ and Adults 18-49, as well as on ESPN by double-digit margins among Total Viewers 2+.
Bundesliga
Bundesliga, the latest sports property to join Univision Deportes’ ever-growing portfolio, debuted with a bang in this quarter. The September 17 face-off between Borussia Dortmund and 1. FC Köln on UniMás – which saw a confident Dortmund move to the top of Bundesliga by defeating Cologne 5-0 – delivered 159,000 Total Viewers 2+ and 92,000 Adults 18-49, making it the most-viewed Bundesliga face-off, on any sports network, in Q3 2017.
2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup
Throughout 25 matches across 12 teams, broadcast of the 14th edition of CONCACAF Gold Cup reached over 29 million Total Viewers 2+ and 13 million Adults 18-49. Univision Deportes’ coverage garnered more than three-times the audience versus FOX’s broadcast of the tournament. Additionally, the tournament outperformed the Spanish-language broadcast of the FIFA Confederations Cup by +23% with Total Viewers 2+ and +26% with Adults 18-49. Across the networks of Univision, CONCACAF Gold Cup averaged 1.4 million Total Viewers 2+ and 766,000 Adults 18-49. Driven by the strong audience delivery of the tournament, UDN finished July as the No. 2 sports network, ahead of ESPN 2 and NBCSN; No. 4 year-to-date in primetime, ahead of FOX Sports 1.
Source: Nielsen, NPM, Live data.
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CONTACT:
Mercedes Diez
212.455.5259
mdiez@univision.net
