ESPN’s dominance in the cable television sporting landscape continues to grow.
The Worldwide Leader announced its best-ever fiscal year ratings. According to a fawning release, “The network averaged 858,000 households on a 24-hour basis, breaking the record set last year (809,000) with an increase of six percent.” ESPN also averaged a 0.9 total day rating, its highest since 1990 when there were way fewer options for sports on television.
Some highlights of the year:
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- Monday Night Football was up 18 percent from FY09 (10.5 vs. 8.9 rating)
- The 2010 NFL Pro Bowl aired on ESPN and delivered an 8.2 rating
- Regular-season college football was up slightly from FY09, with 4 more games
- College Bowl games were up five percent from last year
- 44 live World Cup games aired in FY10, averaging a 2.0 rating