NFL ratings are expected to decline further, but still dominate TV overall.
Share of top 100 TV shows for NFL:
1) 2007–22%
2) 2017–71%
Annual spend for NFL TV rights:
1) NBC — $1B
2) CBS — $1B
3) Fox — $1B
4) ESPN — $2B
Yikes! Every pay-TV subscriber in the U.S. pays $21.50/year to watch Monday Night Football as a part of their monthly bill.
Flashback #1: NFL ad revenue is rising amid a ratings decline
Average NFL viewership (% change):
1) 2016: 16.5M
2) 2017: 15.0M (↓ 10%)
Average NFL ad spot cost (% change):
1) 2016: $468K
2) 2017: $474K (↑ 1%)
The bottom line. It cost 12% more to reach 1 viewer in 2017 compared to 2016.
NFL advertising revenue according to Kantar (% growth):
1) 2010 — $2.2B (↑ 14%)
2) 2011 — $2.3B (↑ 5%)
3) 2012 — $2.7B (↑ 14%)
4) 2013 — $2.9B (↑ 8%)
5) 2014 — $3.5B (↑ 20%)
6) 2015 — $3.8B (↑ 10%)
7) 2016 — $4.2B (↑ 11%)
8) 2017 — $4.6B (↑ 10%)
Top NFL advertisers in 2017 according to Kantar:
1) AT&T — $173M
2) Verizon — $173M
3) Apple — $162M
4) Ford — $162M
5) General Motors — $156M
6) Berkshire Hathaway — $145M
7) Anheuser-Busch — $135M
8) Samsung — $133M
9) Toyota — $125M
10) Southwest — $123M
Flashback #3: Why Companies Spend So Much on Super Bowl Ads
NFL advertising during 2017 regular season:
1) Ratings: ↓ 8.0%
2) Cost per ad spot: ↑ 1.2%
Why does this matter? The average CPM $ for an NFL game increased 10% YoY.
Public service announcement. The average CPM $ for Facebook increased 20% over the same period!
More #1: NFL Executives Acknowledge TV Rights Near An “Inflection Point” With Tech Giants Waiting In Wings
More #2: King Football Still Reigns. But for How Long?
More #3: How to watch NFL football live online, no matter where you are in the world
