or


[11/18/15 - 08:48 AM]
Annual State Farm Champions Classic Posts Second-Highest Rating in Five-Year History
ESPN spins the numbers for Tuesday, November 17.
[via press release from ESPN]

Annual State Farm Champions Classic Posts Second-Highest Rating in Five-Year History

College Football Playoff: Top 25 Earns Best Overnight Rating in Show History

ESPN's Action Continues with Early-Season Tournaments over Holiday Week

ESPN's coverage of the State Farm Champions Classic - No. 2 Kentucky's 74-63 win over No. 5 Duke and No. 13 Michigan State's 79-73 victory over No. 4 Kansas on Tuesday, Nov. 17 - averaged a 1.7 overnight rating for the doubleheader, the second-highest rating in the five-year history of the event (behind 2013, 2.7 average).

In addition, the Kentucky-Duke game ranked as the third-highest rated Champions Classic game with a 2.2 overnight rating, behind both games in 2013. (Kentucky-Michigan State, 2.6 & Kansas-Duke, 2.3).

This year's contests were the culmination of ESPN's eighth annual Tip-Off Marathon presented by Constant Contacts starting the season with 31 hours of continuous game and studio action from Monday, Nov. 16 through Tuesday, Nov. 17.

The Champions Classic is owned and operated by ESPN Events, a division of ESPN.

ESPN Unveiled College Football Playoff: Top 25 Live from Chicago

In between the Champions Classic doubleheader, the latest College Football Playoff committee rankings were exclusively unveiled on College Football Playoff: Top 25 (approx. 9:30 p.m.). The 30-minute special earned a 1.8 overnight, ranking as the best overnight in the history of the show (14 episodes*).

*Includes four episodes where College Football Playoff rankings were not unveiled

Champions Classic Top-10 Metered Markets

Six markets were among the top-10 highest rated markets for both games of the Champions Classic doubleheader: Cincinnati, Dayton, Kansas City, Knoxville, Louisville and Memphis.

· Louisville led all markets for coverage of Kentucky's win over Duke with a 20.3 rating followed by Raleigh-Durham (9.3), Greensboro (7.8), Cincinnati (7.0), Greenville (5.1), Knoxville (5.0), Dayton (4.9), Kansas City (4.8), Charlotte (4.7) and Memphis (4.7).

· Kansas City was the highest-rated market for Michigan State's win over Kansas with an 8.2 rating followed by Louisville (3.6), Detroit (3.2), Birmingham (2.7), Cincinnati (2.1), Dayton (2.1), Richmond (2.0). Knoxville (1.9), Memphis (1.9), Las Vegas (1.8) and Nashville (1.8).

Men's College Basketball: Early-Season Tournaments Tip-Off

ESPN's men's basketball schedule continues during Feast Week presented by Lowe's - highlighted by several tournaments beginning Thursday, Nov. 19, and continuing through the Thanksgiving holiday weekend: Puerto Rico Tip-Off, Gildan Charleston Classic, 2K Classic, Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off, Maui Jim Maui Invitational, FanDuel Legends Classic and CBE Hall of Fame Classic.

Ranked teams in action include: No. 1 North Carolina, No. 2 Kentucky, No. 4 Kansas, No. 5 Duke, No. 6 Virginia, No. 13 Michigan State, No. 14 Indiana, No. 16 Utah, No. 17 Vanderbilt, No. 18 Notre Dame, No. 21 Purdue, No. 22 Butler and No. 23 LSU. Full schedule of week's game (Wednesday-Tuesday)

Annual State Farm Champions Classic Posts Strong Numbers for ESPN and WatchESPN

WatchESPN Nets Most-Watched College Basketball Game to Date

College Football Playoff: Top 25 Earns Best Viewership and Rating in Show History

ESPN's coverage of No. 2 Kentucky's 74-63 win over No. 5 Duke as part of the annual State Farm Champions Classic on Tuesday, Nov. 17, averaged 3,120,000 viewers, marking the second most watched Champions Classic game behind the 2013 Michigan State-Duke contest (4,002,000 viewers). The Champions Classic, in its fifth year, annually pits Duke, Kansas, Kentucky and Michigan State against each other in the neutral-site, early-season men's doubleheader.

The Kentucky-Duke game was WatchESPN's most-watched college basketball game ever, attracting an additional 78,000 average minute impressions to the TV audience, 268,000 total unique viewers and 10,300,000 live minutes viewed - up 39 percent, 22 percent and 12 percent, respectively compared to the previous high (UNC-Duke on Feb. 18, 2015). Overall, the two Champions Classic games attracted 62,000 average minute impressions, up 83 percent compared to last year.

The doubleheader - which also included No. 13 Michigan State's 79-73 victory over No. 4 Kansas from the United Center in Chicago - averaged 2,485,000 viewers.

This year's contests were the culmination of ESPN's eighth annual Tip-Off Marathon presented by Constant Contact - which saw a 6% viewership increase over 2014 (595,000 vs. 560,000). The Marathon consisted of with 31 hours of continuous game and studio action from Monday, Nov. 16 through Tuesday, Nov. 17.

The Champions Classic is owned and operated by ESPN Events, a division of ESPN.

ESPN Unveiled College Football Playoff: Top 25 Live from Chicago

In between the Champions Classic doubleheader, the latest College Football Playoff committee rankings were exclusively unveiled live onsite during College Football Playoff: Top 25. The 30-minute special averaged 3,033,000 viewers and a 1.9 HH rating, garnering the best numbers on record. (14 episodes includes four where College Football Playoff rankings were not unveiled)

Champions Classic Top-10 Metered Markets

Six markets were among the top-10 highest rated markets for both games of the Champions Classic doubleheader: Cincinnati, Dayton, Kansas City, Knoxville, Louisville and Memphis.

· Louisville led all markets for coverage of Kentucky's win over Duke with a 20.3 rating followed by Raleigh-Durham (9.3), Greensboro (7.8), Cincinnati (7.0), Greenville (5.1), Knoxville (5.0), Dayton (4.9), Kansas City (4.8), Charlotte (4.7) and Memphis (4.7).

· Kansas City was the highest-rated market for Michigan State's win over Kansas with an 8.2 rating followed by Louisville (3.6), Detroit (3.2), Birmingham (2.7), Cincinnati (2.1), Dayton (2.1), Richmond (2.0). Knoxville (1.9), Memphis (1.9), Las Vegas (1.8) and Nashville (1.8).

Men's College Basketball: Early-Season Tournaments Tip-Off

ESPN's men's basketball schedule continues during Feast Week presented by Lowe's - highlighted by several tournaments beginning Thursday, Nov. 19, and continuing through the Thanksgiving holiday weekend: Puerto Rico Tip-Off, Gildan Charleston Classic, 2K Classic, Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off, Maui Jim Maui Invitational, FanDuel Legends Classic and CBE Hall of Fame Classic.

Ranked teams in action include: No. 1 North Carolina, No. 2 Kentucky, No. 4 Kansas, No. 5 Duke, No. 6 Virginia, No. 13 Michigan State, No. 14 Indiana, No. 16 Utah, No. 17 Vanderbilt, No. 18 Notre Dame, No. 21 Purdue, No. 22 Butler and No. 23 LSU. Full schedule of week's game (Wednesday-Tuesday)





  [november 2015]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)




most recent ratings | view all posts
[05/21/26 - 02:32 PM]
ESPN Delivered Most-Watched NBA Eastern Conference Finals Game 1 Since 2018
The New York Knicks overtime victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers on May 19 generated an average audience of 7.1 million viewers and peaked with 8.87 million viewers at 10:45 p.m. ET.

[05/21/26 - 02:00 PM]
"Survivor" Historic 50th Season Concludes with Most-Watched Finale Since 2020
The season finale drew an average of 5.78 million viewers, based on Nielsen Preliminary panel only data.
[05/21/26 - 07:01 AM]
NBC Sports' 2026 SuperMotocross Coverage Delivers Viewership Gains and Milestones
The seven races featured on NBC and Peacock averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 468,000 viewers on NBC and Peacock, up 8% vs. 2025.
[05/20/26 - 03:05 PM]
NBC and Peacock Deliver the Most-Watched Western Conference Finals Game 1 Ever for Monday's Spurs-Thunder Double Overtime Thriller
Coverage peaked with 12.0 million viewers from 11:30-11:43 p.m. ET for the second overtime and game's conclusion.
[05/20/26 - 03:04 PM]
ESPN Aired Its Most Viewed 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Second Round of the Current Rights Deal
Collectively all 11 Second Round games, with nine airing on ESPN and two on ABC, delivered 2.2 million viewers, up 76% year-over-year.

[05/20/26 - 07:36 AM]
After Record-Setting 2025 Season, "Sunday Night Football" Finishes Fall-Spring TV Season as Primetime's No. 1 Show for Unprecedented 15th Consecutive Year
The series averaged 23.5 million viewers in 2025, marking the show's best-ever viewership - up nearly 1 million viewers from the prior record for the series set a decade ago (22.6 million in 2015 season) and an increase of 9% over the '24 season (21.6 million).
[05/19/26 - 02:52 PM]
Subway Series Delivers Second Most-Watched FOX Saturday Baseball Telecast of the Season
2,500,000 viewers tuned-in to the two-game slate highlighted by the Mets' 6-3 victory over the Yankees in most of the country.
[05/19/26 - 02:01 PM]
Netflix Viewership Peaks with Nearly 17 Million Global Viewers for MVP MMA's Rousey vs. Carano, Averaging 12.4 Million Viewers Across the Triple Main Event
In the US, the triple-main card averaged 9.3 million viewers, peaking at 11.6 million viewers during Rousey vs. Carano.
[05/19/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of May 11 - "The Roast of Kevin Hart" Heats Up to No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
True crime audiences also streamed the second season of "Worst Ex Ever," which rose to the No. 2 spot on the English TV list with 8.1 million views.
[05/19/26 - 07:07 AM]
TNT Sports Posts Its Most-Watched NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Second Round Ever
Thursday's Game 5 of the Montreal/Buffalo series averaged 1.9 million viewers, making it the most-watched, Second Round, Game 5 on cable ever featuring a Canadian team.
[05/18/26 - 04:03 PM]
"The Rookie" Season 8 Finale Surges to Over 9 Million Total Viewers
Setting new records with its exceptional momentum this season, "The Rookie" finale earned an all-time streaming high for the series based on views over seven days on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+.

[05/15/26 - 02:03 PM]
ABC News Is #1 in Total Viewers on Sunday Morning, in Late-Night and on Friday Night
"20/20" saw week-to-week increases in Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49, hitting 4-week highs in both measures.
[05/14/26 - 10:07 AM]
"Rooster" Capped Off a Standout First Season, Becoming HBO's Most-Watched Comedy Debut in Over 15 Years
The series is averaging 6.5 million U.S. viewers per episode, with the finale reaching 2.2 million viewers in its first three days.
[05/14/26 - 10:01 AM]
Home Run! ESPN Scores Most-Consumed College Softball Regular Season on Record
The 2026 campaign featured four of ESPN's eight most-watched regular season games of all-time and delivered a record-high 10 games with more than 500,000 viewers.

[05/13/26 - 10:30 AM]
Viewership for 2026 NBA Draft Lottery Presentation on ABC Up 23 Percent Year Over Year
ESPN's presentation of the 2026 NBA Draft Lottery on Sunday, May 10, on ABC averaged 2.3 million viewers.