Where does each sports network rank in viewership for 2024?

The new year is upon us and therefore, we know exactly how each network stacked up against each other in 2024.

As the secular decline of linear television continues, securing a year-over-year increase becomes a tall task for any network. But even in this era of television, some networks were able to secure significant growth. Others were able to hold relatively steady. And some fell victim to the realities of the modern linear television business.

Variety compiled a list of how 155 television networks performed in primetime during 2024, with several networks posting some surprising results. A full breakdown of just sports networks can be found at the end of this article.

Getting started, broadcast networks had a good year overall. CBS, NBC, ABC, and Fox were the four most-watched networks on television in primetime for the year — in that order. The four major broadcast nets have certainly benefited as live sports inventory continues to leak outside of the cable ecosystem and back onto their airwaves. No doubt, a presidential election year also likely helped the big four networks in the viewership department. There is one notable exception, however.

While CBS and NBC both saw double-digit increases this year in primetime (up 12% and 10% respectively), and ABC held flat (down 1%), Fox saw a substantial drop off from 2023 with its primetime audience declining 15% year-over-year. The figure looks even worse when considering that the network made a major change to its primetime lineup in 2024 by replacing WWE Smackdown with a package of Friday night college football games. Perhaps the network’s lack of a national broadcast news apparatus (instead focusing its news efforts on the cable network Fox News Channel) proved detrimental in a presidential election year. Whatever the case, it’s a surprising decline considering the performance of its peers.

ABC’s slight decline is also notable. In the first year of the network’s SEC football package, ABC aired a number of highly-viewed games in its primetime window. Those gains were likely offset by airing fewer Monday Night Football simulcasts this season than last.

As for the two other broadcast networks that air live sports — Ion and The CW — both finished the year with declines. Ion, who airs primetime WNBA and NWSL packages, was down 16% year-over-year. The CW, which rarely ever airs sports in primetime, declined just 2%.

The cable networks proved to be a mixed bag. The ESPN family of networks (excluding ESPNEWS, ACC Network, and SEC Network, which are not Nielsen rated) all saw year-over-year declines in primetime. ESPN was down slightly, 2% versus 2023. ESPN2 saw a further drop off, down 11% year-over-year. And ESPNU was down 20% versus last year.

This may say more about the general decline of linear television viewing rather than anything to do with ESPN’s programming. Though it should be noted, ESPN2 and ESPNU have certainly had their programming thinned out over the years as more live sports air exclusively on ESPN+.

Moving over to other cable channels that are exclusive to sports, FS1 stayed flat year-over-year, posting a 1% increase versus 2023. FS2 had a modest increase of 5%, though still barely anybody watches that channel.

The NFL Network saw a rather shocking decline of 26% year-over-year, though the period measured by Variety included at least one additional primetime NFL game last season as compared to this season — which could perhaps skew the numbers. MLB Network finished up 3% versus last year, likely aided by a strong postseason drawing interest to its shoulder programming. NBA TV finished down 2% versus last year. Golf Channel was down a substantial 21% in primetime, though the network doesn’t have a ton of live competition inventory in that window. Tennis Channel finished down 7% versus 2023.

Perhaps the most surprising figure of any sports network comes from Big Ten Network, who increased viewership by 25% year-over-year. The conference’s westward expansion gave the network significantly more live sports inventory in primetime this year, with much of that catered to a West Coast audience.

One last set of networks worth mentioning are the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned channels. TNT and TBS have long been staples of any sports fan’s diet, with NBA, NHL, MLB, and men’s college basketball postseasons all airing on the networks. Both TNT and TBS saw decreases year-over-year, 13% for TNT and 6% for TBS.

But notably, the oft-forgotten sister channel truTV saw a modest 9% increase. 2024 marked a noted shift for truTV from a network that was really only relevant for sports fans during March Madness to one where they may find sports programming year-round. The network began airing Mountain West college football, a number of alternate telecasts for NBA and MLB games, and various sports studio shows throughout the year. The sports-forward strategy seems to have paid off with a high single-digit viewership increase.

Below are the 2024 results for each network that airs live sports, courtesy of Variety. It should be emphasized again, these are primetime viewership numbers. Dayside programming is not included in these measurements.

Rank	NETWORK	VIEWERS (000)	% CHANGE
1.	CBS	5,055	+12%
2.	NBC	4,990	+10%
3.	ABC	3,861	-1%
4.	Fox	2,841	-15%
6.	ESPN	1,674	-2%
10.	Ion	833	-16%
11.	TNT	815	-13%
14.	TBS	738	-6%
16.	USA	673	-2%
24.	The CW	445	-2%
36.	Fox Sports 1	312	+1%
40.	ESPN 2	286	-11%
66.	NFL Network	145	-26%
73.	TruTV	131	+9%
90.	MLB Network	90	+3%
95.	NBA TV	83	-2%
96.	Big Ten Network	80	+25%
104.	Golf	66	-21%
112.	Tennis	51	-7%
122.	ESPN U	35	-20%
124.	Fox Deportes	34	-17%
135.	ESPN Deportes	23	+15%
138.	Fox Sports 2	21	+5%
151.	BEIN Sport Español	2	-33%
151.	BEIN Sport	2	-33%

[Variety]