BBM ratings for this weekend sports

[calgaryrocks]

Curling just misses sweeping the ratings

There is no debate on what sport dominates the televisioin ratings in Canada. (Hint: It involves a saucer pass, which hockey fans have been explaining to me for days as if I were a moron because I professed ignorance of such a thing on Monday.)
But curling came within a brush hair of sweeping (enough puns for you?) the top weekend TV spot. Had Canada managed to make it to the final, there's a pretty good chance that could have beaten out Hockey Night In Canada.
As it was, the championship game between Germany and Scotland still managed to draw almost 1 million viewers Sunday in becoming the most-watched match not involving Canada. The playoff game between Canada and Germany on Friday topped the million mark.
While it's technically not a sports event, the CBC mini-series on the life of the network's face of hockey scored well in the ratings. Part One of Keep Your Head Up, Kid: The Don Cherry Story averaged 1.38 million viewers and ``the gripping conclusion" as the ads heralded it did 1.27 million. Amazing.
And if you're wondering about the NCAA basketball ratings, The Score/Sun TV's combined best showing over the weekend was 160,000 -- which may or may not indicate anything. The Score claims that 90 per cent of those watching are tuning in to either The Score or Sun TV -- which may or may not indicate anything. (If you're wondering, those in the GTA who choose to watch CBS are in facting watching it on Sun TV.)
The good news is that the Canadian channels' weekend average audience of 142,000 is up 42 per cent over last year's comparable weekend.
Here are the top weekend sports ratings on English-language television, according to BBM Canada overnight figures:
1. NHL, Rangers-Leafs/Devils-Habs/Panthers-Sens, Saturday, CBC: 1,500,000
2. Curling, Canada vs. Germany playoff, Friday, TSN: 1,069,000
3. Curling, women's worlds final, Germany vs. Scotland, Sunday, TSN: 990,000
3. Curling, women's worlds semifinal, Canada vs. Scotland, Saturday, TSN: 990,000
5. NHL, Canucks at Sharks, Saturday, CBC: 987,000
6. NHL, Maple Leafs at Penguins, Sunday, Sportsnet Ontario, 860,000*
7. NHL, Senators at Sabres, Friday, TSN: 721,000
8. Curling, women's worlds playoff, Scotland vs. Sweden, Saturday, TSN: 599,000
9. NHL, Hockey Night In Canada pre-game, Saturday, CBC: 555,000
10. Figure skating, world championships, Saturday, CBC: 382,000
11. PGA, Arnold Palmer Invitationial final round, Sunday, Global: 358,000
12. PGA, Arnold Palmer Invitational, Saturday, Global: 297,000
13. NBA, Raptors at Nuggets, Friday, TSN2: 263,000
14. Curling, women's worlds bronze, Canada vs. Sweden, Sunday, TSN2: 242,000
15. Auto racing, NASCAR pre-race, Sunday, TSN: 241,000**
* Ontario only
** Viewers on U.S. channel not calculated.
OTHER STUFF: There won't be any shortage of Tiger Woods coverage next week, though most of it will be (thankfully) restricted to golf. ESPN did some fancy negotiating with the nabobs at Augusta National and will show Tiger's first tee shot. TSN is likely to have that, along with the rest of the weekday coverage. ... XM Canada is also getting into the Tiger stuff and will carry hole-by-hole radio coverage of the tournament starting every day at 2 p.m. ... If the prospect of live golf on radio doesn't turn your crank, Talk 820 will launch the second season of its Canadian PGA Radio Show on Saturday at 10 a.m. Co-hosted by CPGA executive Jeff Dykeman and Hamilton Spectator golf writer Garry McKay, the show is also available online at www.cpga.com.

[calgaryrocks]

A little sanity on Tiger's drawing power, please

There have been all kinds of wild predictions regarding the size of the audience that will be generated by Tiger Woods' return to the golf course Thursday.
There have been claims from network types that it could approach that of the Obama inauguration. Donald Trump even went as far as predicting Super Bowl numbers for Tiger's return, though Trump's knowledge of TV ratings isn't verifiable. Considering that each of the the past two Super Bowls have produced about 100 million viewers in the U.S., that's a tall order indeed.
While predicting ratings is a mug's game, I'm going to risk being a mug and predicting they won't be anywhere near the Super Bowl or the 37.8 million Americans who watched Obama become president.
The Masters record, set in 1997, is 20 million American viewers. Even if Tiger is in the final pairing Sunday, it's hard to imagine double that audience tuning in.
While there's a great curiosity factor here, you have to wonder just how many women will care to watch the Great Philanderer proving that infidelity didn't hurt his performance on the course. And you do have to remember that this is golf, a marathon sport that pales in popularity compared with the NFL and even presidential ceremonies.
As for the ratings we already know about, here are the most-watched sports programs on English-language television over the Easter weekend according to BBM Canada overnight calculations. Noticeably low on the list is the NCAA basketball tournament, which may or may not be an indication of its popularity.
We do know that 115,000 people watched Monday's final on The Score and another 67,000 147,000 on the Sun TV/CBS simulcast in the Toronto area. The Score says 91 per cent of all Canadian viewers watched either its channel or the Sun TV simulcast, which means the total audience was 288,000.
How The Score knows this is a bit of a mystery. We do know, however, that ratings on CBS in the U.S. were up 34 per cent over last year and among the highest ever.
1. NHL, Bruins-Leafs/Sabres-Habs, Saturday, CBC: 1,694,000
2. NHL, Canadiens at Flyers, Friday, TSN: 869,000
3. NHL, Oilers at Coyotes, Saturday, CBC: 777,000
4. NHL, Canucks at Kings, Friday, Sportsnet Pacific, 614,000*
5. NHL, Hockey Night In Canada pre-game, Saturday, CBC: 554,000
6. Baseball, Blue Jays at Rangers, Monday, Sportsnet: 489,000
7. NHL, Flames at Avalanche, Friday, Sportsnet West: 479,000*
8. NHL, Flames at Blackhawks, Sunday, Sportsnet West: 479,000*
9. NHL, Senators at Islanders, Saturday, CBC: 408,000
10. Baseball, Yankees at Red Sox, Sunday, Sportsnet: 371,000
11. NHL, Red Wings at Flyers, Sunday, TSN: 357,000**
PGA, Houston Open final round, Sunday, Global: 353,000
12. NBA, Warriors at Raptors, Sunday, TSN: 331,000
13. NCAA, Duke vs. Butler, Monday, Score/SunTV: 262,000
14. NBA, Raptors at 76ers, Saturday, TSN: 240,000
15. Auto racing, NASCAR Nationwide, Saturday, TSN: 221,000
16. PGA, Houston Open third round, Saturday, Global: 204,000
* One channel only
** Viewers on NBC not calculated




don't know about you guys, but i won't be watching tiger. I have enough other things to do than sit down and watch golf, just because of the controversial tiger woods. but maybe that is because i wouldn't normally watch golf anyways.

[d_phaneuf]

Those ratings for Flames and Canucks games are huge for regular season

[calgaryrocks]

yea they were good for regional broadcasts, but it is that time of the season


Tiger's return a hit, but not a smashing one

Those were some pretty impressive ratings produced by the Return of the Prodigal Masters. BBM Canada confirmed Tuesday that the 1.8 million viewers who watched on CBS through Global on Sunday was indeed an all-time Masters ratings record.
But, frankly, considering the hype this is all a bit underwhelming.
Prior to Sunday, the biggest Masters audience in Canada came during the 2005 tournament: 1.6 million. But that was under the old set-top box system that didn't include people watching in groups and at bars and restaurants.
The new personal people meter system, considered far more accurate, is producing ratings about 20 per cent higher. Taking that into account, Sunday's finale might was a ratings success, but hardly the ratings smash that so many expected.
It produced solid ratings south of the border, too, but not a record.
The reason? There were no doubt plenty, but I'm sticking with my theory that a lot of women who normally watch golf were turned off by Tiger's off-course antics.
Speaking of impressive ratings, Monday's Blue Jays home opener averaged 766,000 viewers on Rogers Sportsnet. You can't compare that with last year's home opener -- it did 440,000 on only two channels under the old system -- but it's a promising number. It'll be interesting to see how that holds up if when the Jays start to falter.
Here are the top weekend sports ratings on English-language television, according to BBM Canada overnight calculations:
1. NHL, Leafs-Habs/Sabres-Sens, Saturday, CBC: 2,298,000
2. Golf, Masters final round, Sunday, Global-CBS: 1,800,000
3. NHL, Flames at Canucks, Satuday, CBC: 1,370,000
4. Golf, Masters third round, Saturday, Global-CBS: 1,044,000
5. Curling, world championship men's final, Sunday, TSN: 607,000
6. Golf, Masters second round, Friday, TSN: 616,000
7. NHL, Hockey Night In Canada pre-game, Saturday, CBC: 538,000
8. Curling, world championship men's semifinal, Saturday, TSN: 477,000
9. Baseball, Jays at Orioles, Saturday, Sportsnet: 457,000
10. Baseball, Jays at Orioles, Sunday, Sportsnet: 425,000
11. Baseball, Jays at Orioles, Friday, Sportsnet: 324,000
12. NBA, Raptors at Hawks, Friday, TSN: 312,000
13. NBA, Bulls at Raptors, Sunday, TSN: 291,000
14. Horse racing, Grand National Steeplechase, Saturday, CBC: 237,000
15. Golf, Masters preview show, Saturday, TSN: 216,000
16. NHL, Capitals at Bruins, Sunday, TSN: 208,000*
* Viewers on NBC not calculated

[calgaryrocks]

from last weekend (the 16-18)


Canadiens become Canada's team for a while

It's long been assumed that the Toronto Maple Leafs, for reasons apparently not connected to logic, are Canada's team.
They consistently draw the highest TV ratings, thanks mainly to a large Southern Ontario populace that bleeds blue and white regardless of the team's ineptitude. (Maybe the bleeding comes from being kicked in the wallet repeatedly for the better part of 40 years.)They also have a huge following across the country, as witnessed by the number of Leaf jerseys worn in Vancouver, Calgary and Ottawa.
But maybe, just maybe, the Leafs' hold on Canadian hockey fans is slipping. Maybe, just maybe, their legion of slavish fans are noticing that other Canadian teams are worthy of their loyalty.
The evidence lies in the returns from the first round of the National Hockey League playoffs, where the Montreal Canadiens have been drawing huge ratings. Saturday's game against the Washington Capitals drew an average of 2.1 million viewers to TSN, a strong but not an overwhelming number and one the Leafs have topped during the regular season.
But another 1.3 million watched the game on French-language RDS -- an impressive 39 per cent of the Quebec French market.
This attention will probably pass if the Habs fail to come back in the series and Quebecois interest dissipates. But with a Saturday night audience focused on the Canadiens, it's possible that some viewers will have noticed that there's at least one other team worth cheering for in this country.
On the other hand, things will probably return to normal the first time the Leafs score a pre-season goal.
Here are the top weekend sports ratings on English-language television, according to BBM Canada overnight calculations:
1. NHL, Kings at Canucks, Saturday, CBC: 2,135,000
2. NHL, Canadiens at Capitals, Saturday, TSN: 2,100,000
3. NHL, Senators at Penguins, Friday, CBC: 1,912,000
4. NHL, Penguins at Senators, Sunday, CBC: 1,690,000
5. NHL, Red Wings at Coyotes, Friday, TSN: 877,000
6. NHL, Coyotes at Red Wings, Sunday, TSN: 829,000*
7. NHL, Predators at Blackhawks, Sunday, TSN: 815,000
8. NHL, Devils at Flyers, Sunday, TSN: 788,000
9. NHL, Avalanche at Sharks, Friday, CBC: 784,000
10. NHL, Bruins at Sabres, Saturday, CBC: 722,000*
11. NHL, Sharks at Avalanche, Sunday, CBC: 708,000
12. NHL, Flyers at Devils, Friday, TSN: 599,000
13. Curling, Grand Slam men's final, Sunday, CBC: 484,000
14. Baseball, Angels at Blue Jays, Sunday, Sportsnet: 481,000
15. Swimming, World synchronized championships, Saturday, CBC: 447,000
16. Curling, Grand Slam women's final, Saturday, CBC: 427,000
17. Baseball, Angels at Blue Jays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 354,000
18. Baseball, Angels at Blue Jays, Friday, Sportsnet: 324,000
19. PGA, Verizon Heritage final round, Sunday, Global-CBS: 292,000
* Viewers on NBC not calculated
OTHER STUFF: Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, which basically runs the NBA's broadcast operations in Canada, has managed to find homes for all playoff games this week. But you'll need a pretty comprehensive cable/satellite package to see them all. Raptors NBA TV has nine games, with TSN2 airing eight this week. The Score has another six while TSN managed to find room for three. ... If you don't have the NFL Network and really want to watch the NFL draft Thursday night, you're going to have to do some work. TSN2 will show the first hour at 7:30, before going to the Chicago-Nashville playoff game. Now here's where it gets really complicated. When the 7 p.m. NHL game between the Flyers and Devils ends (let's say around 10 p.m.), the Chicago-Nashville game will migrate to TSN and TSN2 will pick up what's left of the draft. TSN3, anyone? If you do have the NFL Network, it will have every excruciating moment. By the way, the next day's picks will be carried live on TSN2. ... When the Rogers Sportsnet has added a couple of ex-NHLers to its playoff editions of Hockeycentral. Recently fired Tampa Bay general manager Brian Lawton appears Tuesday (6 p.m.) while retired defenceman Marty McSorley will be on Wednesday's show. McSorley will also do other work during the Canucks-Kings series. ... If real sports news isn't enough for you, try out this ``report" on Saturday's mixed martial arts fiasco: http://etruesports.com/index.php?page=article&articleId=400 At least, I think it's not real.








and this weekends





TSN gets both Game 7s, but CBC sitting pretty for round 2

As the first round of the two-month National Hockey League odyssey nears an end, it's still not clear whether CBC made the right call in choosing the Pittsburgh-Ottawa series over the Montreal-Washington one.
A glance at this week's TV listings sure points to a victory by TSN, mainly because it has ended up with both Game 7 showdowns. Those will produce huge ratings in what has been a pretty successful playoff run for TSN.
But CBC didn't fare too badly. While taking the Vancouver series was pretty much a no-brainer, the Canucks certainly haven't disappointed in the ratings. CBC's Pens-Sens broadcast Saturday night drew upwards of a million viewers more than TSN's carriage of the Habs-Caps game on Friday, though CBC pretty much had the hockey world to itself Saturday night. Still, an audience of almost 3 million is not to be dismissed lightly.
Whoever wins this round, there's no doubt that CBC has the upper hand in the next. It gets the first two picks, which means it could end up with both Canadian-based teams should the Habs survive Wednesday's game in Washington.
If not, the Corp. still gets Vancouver, which guarantees high ratings for at least one series. If the Habs should die on Wednesday, expect CBC to stick with Sidney Crosby and the Penguins. They did nothing in the first round to merit being dropped.
Here are the top-rated weekend sports events on English-language television, according to BBM Canada overnight calculations:
1. NHL, Penguins at Senators, Saturday, CBC: 2,948,000
2. NHL, Canucks at Kings, Sunday, CBC: 2,826,000
3. NHL, Kings at Canucks, Friday, CBC: 1,953,000
4. NHL, Canadiens at Capitals, Friday, TSN: 1,629,000
5. NHL, Avalanche at Sharks, Saturday, CBC: 1,359,000
6. NHL, Predators at Blackhawks, Saturday, TSN: 747,000*
7. NHL, Coyotes at Red Wings, Sunday, TSN: 715,000*
8. NHL, Bruins at Sabres, Friday, CBC: 593,000
9. NHL, Hockey Night In Canada pre-game, Saturday, CBC: 570,000
10. NHL, Red Wings at Coyotes, Friday, TSN: 521,000
11. Baseball, Blue Jays at Rays, Friday, Sportsnet: 452,000**
12. Baseball, Blue Jays at Rays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 374,000
13. Baseball, Blue Jays at Rays, Sunday, Sportsnet: 279,000
14. NHL, Pre-game show, Sunday, TSN: 263,000
15. Figure skating, world synchronized championships, Saturday, CBC: 201,000
16. MLS, Seattle at Toronto FC, Saturday, CBC: 188,000
17. Auto racing, NASCAR Aaron's 499, Sunday, TSN2: 175,000*
18. NBA, Mavericks at Spurs, Sunday, TSN: 130,000
19. EPL, Sunderland at Hull, Saturday, Sportsnet: 110,000
20. NBA, Lakers at Thunder, Saturday, TSN: 106,000
* Viewers on U.S. channels not calculated
** 3 channels only
LOOKING SOUTH: There's nothing like a great playoff round to stir up interest, even south of the border. The NHL reports that Sunday's events produced the busiest day ever on NHL.com. The weekend was a good one for NBC, too. Its weekend games earned 1.3 overnight ratings, up 8 per cent over last year.

[calgaryrocks]

Surprise ratings for NBA, boxing and the CFL draft

It should surprise nobody that this year's Stanley Cup playoffs are producing huge ratings in Canada. There are two home teams involved and the hockey has been as good as any and better than most.
But CBC, TSN and RDS aren't the only ones enjoying the benefits of all this. Both Versus and NBC are reporting double-digit ratings jumps. Even the presence of a Canadian team on Sunday afternoon didn't stop NBC from posting a 14 per cent increase over last year.
Big numbers for hockey in Canada are nothing new, so let's take a look at some of the surprises. There were some good ones -- namely the NBA, boxing and the CFL -- and one bad one -- Toronto FC.
The NBA hasn't been treated very well by Canadian television, with playoff games bouncing from channel to channel and being relegated to the likes of Raptors NBA TV, TSN2 and The Score. Nothing wrong with those channels, but they don't have the reach of TSN or Rogers Sportsnet.
Regardless, two weekend games still managed to score some decent audiences. Friday's Lakers-Thunder game hhit 246,000 on TSN while Sunday's Bucks-Hawks showdown drew 194,000 to TSN2.
The death of boxing has been predicted for years now, but obviously those reports have been premature. A pre-fight special on the Mosely-Mayweather bout hit 433,000 viewers for TSN on Saturday night -- up against hockey. Not bad.
And how about the CFL draft. In only its second year on TV, it doubled its audience to 119,000 on TSN Sunday afternoon. Imagine what it could do if the show went beyond talking heads and commissioner Mark Cohon's smiling announcements.
A few more cameras in a few more war rooms and a few more players would be welcome.
As for Toronto FC, who can explain the fact its game against Real Salt Lake on Sunday evening drew a paltry 25,000 viewers. Yes, the game was on only two Sportsnet channels (Ontario and Pacific) and it was up against hockey, but Slap Chop infomercials draw better than that.

Here are the top weekend sports offerings, according to BBM Canada overnight ratings:
1. NHL, Canucks at Blackhawks, Saturday, CBC: 2,887,000
2. NHL, Canadiens at Penguins, Friday, CBC: 2,476,000
3. NHL, Canadiens at Penguins, Sunday, CBC: 1,666,000*
4. NHL, Red Wings at Sharks, Sunday, TSN: 1,460,000
5. NHL, Hockey Night In Canada pre-game, Saturday, CBC: 1,045,000
6. NHL, Flyers at Bruins, Saturday, TSN: 833,000*
7. NHL, Sharks-Wings pre-game show, Sunday, TSN: 502,000
8. Boxing, Mayweather-Mosely special, Saturday, TSN: 433,000
9. Golf, PGA Quail Hollow Championship final round, Sunday, Global/CBS: 305,000
10. MLB, A's at Blue Jays, Friday, Sportsnet: 275,000
11. Auto racing, NASCAR Sprint Cup, Saturday, TSN: 257,000*
12. MLB, A's at Blue Jays, Sunday, Sportsnet: 251,000
13. NBA, Lakers at Thunder, Friday, TSN: 246,000
14. MLB, A's at Blue Jays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 243,000
15. OHL, Barrie at Windsor, Sunday, Sportsnet: 208,000
16. NBA, Bucks at Hawks, Sunday, TSN2: 194,000
17. Soccer, Tottenham at Bolton, Saturday, Sportsnet: 123,000
18. CFL, College draft, Sunday, TSN: 119,000
* Viewers on U.S. channels not calculated
Soccer, TFC at Salt Lake, Saturday, Sportsnet: 25,000**
** Ontario and Pacific channels only
OTHER STUFF: A tip of the cap goes to Rogers Sportsnet reporter Arash Madani, who created a stir around the CFL Saturday by breaking the Toronto-Saskatchewan pre-draft trade. Madani has obviously benefited from the contacts he established while working for CFL teams a few years back. ... You never know what The Score is going to do next. The channel has struck a partnership with entertainment paper t.o.night. Under the deal, Score on-air types will write for the paper while promoting it on the air. It seems like a rather unusual pairing, but you can't say The Score doesn't think outside the bo

[calgaryrocks]

reviving an old thread as i am bored this afternoon
Football -- both kinds -- dominate the sports ratings

There's no doubt that football is ruling the air waves in Canada this summer.
The sport the rest of the world calls football continued to score huge ratings for CBC, which averaged 1.89 million viewers per match in the World Cup quarter-finals. That's about a 400,000 per match boost over the round of 16.
As popular as the quadrennial soccer orgy has been on television, it's also a big hit online. Friday's games averaged more than 150,000 live streams.
The sport North Americans call football also had a great holiday weekend as Canadian Football League openers averaged 880,000 per game.
The big surprise of the weekend, though, had nothing to do with feet. The Queen's Plate, which featured an actual queen in attendance, hit 700,000 viewers for CBC. It's assumed most were watching the horses and not the royalty.
Here are the top-rated sports events on English-Canadian television over the July 1 weekend, according to BBM Canada overnight ratings:
1. World Cup, Argentina vs. Germany, Saturday, CBC: 1,950,000
2. World Cup, Paraguay vs. Spain, Saturday, CBC: 1,938,000
3. World Cup, Uruguay vs. Ghana, Friday, CBC: 1,853,000
4. World Cup, Netherlands vs. Brazil, Friday, CBC: 1,841,000
5. CFL, Alouettes at Roughriders, Thursday, TSN: 1,060,000
6. CFL, Lions at Eskimos, Sunday, TSN: 921,000
7. CFL, Tiger-Cats at Blue Bombers, Friday, TSN: 882,000
8. Horse racing, Queen's Plate, Sunday, CBC: 700,000
9. CFL, Argonauts at Stampeders, Thursday, TSN: 658,000
10. Track and Field, Diamond League, Saturday, CBC: 475,000
11. MLB, Blue Jays at Yankees, Saturday, Sportsnet: 417,000
12. Auto racing, NASCAR Sprint Cup, Saturday, TSN: 405,000
13. Tennis, Wimbledon men's final, Sunday, NBC/Global: 378,000

[calgaryrocks]

World Cup final moves into the top 5

It really wasn't much of a game, unless you love yellow cards and flopping around, but Sunday's World Cup final is now among one of the most-watched events in Canadian television.
CBC drew an average of 5,131,000 viewers for Sunday's game, putting it fourth among most-watched sports events in the past year. The king, for now and probably all time, was the Olympic men's hockey final (16.6 million) with the Super Bowl (6,025,000) and world junior hockey final (5,3 million) following. But the World Cup fits in next, just ahead of last November's Grey Cup game (5,087,000.)
Sunday's game doubled the audience of the 2006 final, with the new ratings system as always a big factor.
Here are the top-rated weekend sports shows in English Canada, according to BBM Canada overnight ratings: Overall, CBC averaged 1.265 million for its month-long coverage and probably set some sort of record with more tha 8 million live streams on its website.
1. World Cup, Netherlands vs. Spain, Sunday, CBC: 5,131,000
2. World Cup, Germany vs. Uruguay, Saturday, CBC: 1,894,000
3. CFL, Roughriders at Lions, Saturday, TSN: 1,186,000
4. CFL, Argonauts at Blue Bombers, Friday, TSN: 806,000
5. CFL, Alouettes at Eskimos, Sunday, TSN: 657,000
6. CFL, Stampeders at Tiger-Cats, Saturday, TSN: 454,000
7. MLB, Red Sox at Blue Jays, Sunday, Sportsnet: 449,000
8. MLB. Red Sox at Blue Jays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 361,000
9. Soccer, Soccer Day In Canada, Saturday, CBC: 355,000
10. Rodeo, Calgary Stampede, Saturday, CBC: 351,000
11. MLB, Red Sox at Blue Jays, Friday, Sportsnet: 311,000
12. Auto Racing, F-1 British Grand Prix, Sundady, TSN: 280,000
13. Rodeo, Calgary Stampede, Friday, CBC: 227,000
14. Equestrian, Spruce Meadows Show Jumping, Satuday, CBC: 220,000
15. Soccer, Colorado at Toronto FC, Saturday, CBC: 215,000

[calgaryrocks]

ratings from last weekend
CFL grabs eyeballs, but so do horses, bulls and calves

Now that we're officially into the summer television doldrums, what with the marquee special events off the calendar, the Canadian Football League has assumed its rightful spot at the top of the sports ratings.
That's not a surprise, but what is surprising is the company the CFL is keeping. While football games took the top two spots on the weekend, third place was held by something other than the usual suspect: rodeo.
Yes, the Calgary Stampede drew an average of 690,000 viewers to CBC on Sunday evening. That's more than baseball, the Toronto Indy and even the British Open. Even if you love the sight of calves being roped, you'd have to admit rodeo outdrawing the British Open isn't exactly everyday business. Pretty impressive numbers, that's for sure.
Also impressive were the Toronto Blue Jays, who despite falling out of the pennant race still managed to attract more than 500,000 viewers on Sunday -- against Baltimore, of all teams. Maybe baseball fans have a sadistic streak in them.
That might apply to rodeo, too, since there no doubt are those who tune in to watch the crashes.
Speaking of crashes, the Toronto Indy drew 186,000 to TSN2. In itself, that's not very good, but since the race was also on ABC, it would be safe to assume that at least an equal amount watched it on the more accessible American channel.
The same cannot be said for Toronto FC, which continues to draw flies despite a successful season. Saturday's game in Philadelphia managed only 132,000 on CBC.
Here are the top weekend sports ratings, according to BBM Canada overnight calculations:
1. CFL, Eskimos at Roughriders, Saturday, TSN: 992,000
2. CFL, Alouettes at Lions, Friday, TSN: 731,000
3. Rodeo, Calgary Stampede, Sunday evening, CBC: 690,000
4. CFL, Blue Bombers at Tiger-Cats, Friday, TSN: 612,000
5. MLB, Blue Jays at Orioles, Saturday, Sportsnet: 561,000
6. Golf, British Open third round, Saturday, TSN: 535,000
7. Golf, British Open final round, Sunday, TSN: 509,000
8. MLB, Blue Jays at Orioles, Sunday, Sportsnet: 436,000
9. Golf, British Open second round, Friday, TSN: 284,000
10. Rodeo, Calgary Stampede, Sunday afternoon, CBC: 304,000
11. MLB, Blue Jays at Orioles, Friday, Sportsnet: 284,000*
12. MLB, Mets at Giants, Sunday, Sportsnet: 220,000
13. Auto racing, Toronto Indy, Sunday, TSN2: 186,000**
14. Auto racing, NASCAR Nationwide, Saturday, TSN: 149,000
15. Soccer, Toronto FC at Philadelphia, Saturday, CBC: 132,000
* Three channels only
** Viewers on ABC not calculated

[calgaryrocks]

Long weekend - BY THE NUMBERS: It's summer, so the CFL and Blue Jays must be dominating the sports ratings. But maybe the most interesting number from the weekend came from Formula One racing. Getting an average of 336,000 to watch a car race at 8 a.m. on a holiday weekend is no mean feat. Getting them to watch it at 5 a.m. on the West Coast is even more amazing.
Here are the most-watched English-language sports broadcasts for the past weekend, according to BBM Canada overnight ratings:
1. CFL, Tiger-Cats at Roughriders, Saturday, TSN: 1,035,000
2. CFL, Blue Bombers at Stampeders, Saturday, TSN: 884,000
3. CFL, Lions at Eskimos, Friday, TSN: 801,000
4. MLB, Indians at Blue Jays, Sunday, Sportsnet: 573,000
5. MLB, Indians at Blue Jays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 526,000
6. Auto racing, NASCAR Pennsylvania 500, Sunday, TSN: 429,000
7. MLB, Indians at Blue Jays, Friday, Sportsnet: 412,000*
8. Auto racing, F1 Hungarian Grand Prix, Sunday, TSN: 336,000
9. Track and field, Canadian championships, Saturday, CBC: 197,000
10. Extreme sports, Summer X-games, Sunday, TSN: 196,000
11. CFL, Pre-game show, Friday, TSN: 157,000
12. Athletics, ITU Triathlon, Saturday, CBC: 145,000
* 3 channels only

[calgaryrocks]

this is for the weekend of the 7th (not this last weekend)
Little love for Toronto FC on television -- yet

The CBC had better be right about Major League Soccer.
The people's network recently jettisoned the Raptors because it felt ratings weren't quite good enough to justify those weekend time slots. On the other hand, it expressed deep and abiding love for Toronto FC, which would give its left halfback to get the kind of ratings the Raptors drew.
Witness Saturday's poor draw, the latest in a series of poor ratings for the MLS club.Since its inception, the Toronto team has been a major hit at the gate and a semi-disaster on television.
But this isn't a case of the CBC not realizing that ratings aren't calculated like golf. Low numbers are bad, not good, in the TV game.
The CBC's faith in TFC stems from its belief that adding two more teams in Canada over the next two years will ignite interest in MLS. A Toronto team that barely draws flies on television will see ratings soar once it has more Canadian rivals in Vancouver and Montreal is how the CBC sees it.
It could happen. But it also could be a repeat of what we saw when there were two NBA franchises here: Apathy.
Stay tuned.
Meanwhile, the CFL continues to dominate the summer ratings, though a near perfect game and a late playoff run by the Toronto Blue Jays helped their numbers soar.
Here are the most-watched sports events on English-language television over the weekend, according to BBM Canada overnight ratings:
1. CFL, Blue Bombers at Tiger-Cats, Saturday, TSN: 858,000
2. CFL, Roughriders at Alouettes, Friday, TSN: 853,000 ***

3. CFL, Stampeders at Lions, Saturday, TSN: 795,000
4. MLB, Rays at Blue Jays, Sunday, Sportsnets: 760,000
5. CFL, Argonauts at Eskimos, Friday, TSN: 649,000
6. MLB, Rays at Blue Jays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 493,000
7. Auto racing, NASCAR Sprint Cup, Sunday, TSN: 448,000
8. MLB, Rays at Blue Jays, Friday, Sportsnet: 446,000*
9. PGA, Bridgestone Invitational final round, Sunday, Global/CBS: 339,000
10. NFL, Bengals vs. Cowboys, Sunday, TSN: 305,000**
11. PGA, Bridgestone Invitational third round, Saturday, Global/CBS: 255,000
12. Auto racing, NASCAR Nationwide, Satuday, TSN: 182,000
13. MLB, Red Sox at Yankees, Sundady, TSN2: 164,000
14. MLS, Chivas at Toronto FC, Saturday, CBC: 134,000
* 3 channels only
** Ratings for NBC not calculated
*** RDS numbers not calculated

[calgaryrocks]

aaaand now for this last weekends ratings (13-15)
Sportsnet One's first weekend a ratings disaster

It probably doesn't happen that often, but I really understated the case in my Monday column when I knocked Rogers for shutting out tens of thousands of Blue Jays fans by putting Saturday's game on Sportsnet One.
I should have said hundreds of thousands. That's what the ratings indicate, anyway.
The Jays two games on the West Coast scored more than 480,000 viewers apiece on Rogers Sportsnet. Saturday's game, available only on Sportsnet One to Rogers customers, drew 31,000. Now that's not a national audience since Rogers sphere of cable influence doesn't extend to the West and many parts east of Ontario, but that's a pretty dismal showing.
Even worse was an English Premier League game that attracted all of 3,000 viewers.
Sure, most viewers were probably unaware that Sportsnet Junior even existed. One reader tells of calling Rogers in Toronto and finding that even some of their employees didn't know what Sportsnet One was or what channels it was on.
This will eventually change. After all, TSN2 scored some pretty dismal ratings in the early going and is doing just fine now. But in the meantime there are legions of irate Blue Jays fans wondering what they did to deserve this treatment.
Here are the weekend's most-watched sports events on English-language television, according to BBM Canada ratings:
1. CFL, Alouettes at Argos, Saturday, TSN: 829,000
2. CFL, Tiger-Cats at Blue Bombers, Friday, TSN: 817,000
3. CFL, Eskimos at Stampeders, Sunday, TSN: 768,000
4. Golf, PGA Championship final round, Sunday, TSN: 530,000*
5. MLB, Blue Jays at Angels, Sunday, Sportsnet: 484,000
6. MLB: Blue Jays at Angels, Friday, Sportsnet: 481,000
7. Golf, PGA Championship third round, Saturday, TSN: 427,000*
8. Tennis, Rogers Cup second semifinal, Saturday, CBC: 364,000
9. Golf, PGA Championship second round, Friday, TSN: 314,000
10. Tennis, Rogers Cup first final, Sunday, CBC: 299,000
11. Track and Field, Diamond League London, Saturday, CBC: 224,000
12. Tennis, Rogers Cup first semifinal, Saturday, CBC: 221,000
13. Auto racing, NASCAR Sprint Cup, Sunday, TSN2: 217,000
14. Soccer, West Brom at Chelsea, Saturday, Sportnset: 130,000
* Viewers for CBS not calculated

[calgaryrocks]

Last weekends numbers
CFL dominates weekend TV ratings

It's long been said that the Canadian Football League season doesn't really start until Labour Day in both intensity and fan interest. If that's the case, the CFL is in for a heck of a fall.
Its two games dominated the weekend ratings once again, with Saturday's Saskatchewan-Edmonton game topping 1 million viewers. The Calgary-B.C. game was next with 771,000 viewers.
What's impressive about those numbers is that both games involved the league's worst teams, with both B.C. and Edmonton entering them with 1-6 records.
Here are the top weekend sports ratings in English Canada, according to BBM Canada overnight ratings:
1. CFL, Roughriders at Eskimos, Saturday, TSN: 1,050,000
2. CFL, Stampeders at Lions, Friday, TSN: 771,000
3. MLB, Tigers at Blue Jays, Sunday, Sportsnet, 501,000
4. MLB, Tigers at Blue Jays, Saturday, Sportsnet: 448,000
5. Auto racing, NASCAR NAPA 200, Sunday, TSN: 378,000
6. LPGA, Canadian Women's Open final round, Sunday, CBC: 252,000
7. Auto racing, F1 Belgian Grand Prix, Sunday, TSN: 239,000
8. PGA, The Barclays third round, Saturday, TSN: 157,000*
9. MLB, Diamondbacks at Giants, Sunday, Sportsnet: 153,000
11. LPGA, Canadian Women's Open third round, Saturday, CBC: 124,000
12. Track and field, Diamond League, Saturday, CBC: 106,000
13. PGA, The Barclays final round, Sunday, TSN: 101,000*
14. MLS, Salt Lake at Toronto FC, Saturday, Sportsnet: 57,000**
* CBS viewers not calculated
** Two channels only

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Riders-Bombers set new all time record for regular season game ratings. I couldn't find a source to confirm if that record held through the Monday games.

http://www.leaderpost.com/sports/foo...067/story.html