Liverpool-Chelsea Game On NBCSN Most-Watched Early Match in U.S. History

Viewing figures are in for NBCSN’s live broadcast of Liverpool against Chelsea, the biggest match of the 2013/14 Premier League season. The 9am ET broadcast was watched by an average of 940,000 viewers, which ranks as the most-watched early (pre 10am ET) soccer broadcast ever in the United States and the third most-watched game ever on cable (behind the 1.033 million who watched the Manchester derby on ESPN in April, 2012, and the 1.019 million for Chelsea-Manchester United on NBCSN in January, 2014).

The viewing audience of almost 1 million soccer fans in the United States on a Sunday morning is incredible. Recently, one of NBC Sports’ executives told The Hollywood Reporter how the network has uncovered a ratings bonanza for early morning weekend television that usually runs reruns or infomercials.

“The ratings continue to deliver and grow and we’ve uncovered a new daypart,” Jon Miller, president of programming, NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network.”Rarely has anyone gone out and attacked that daypart because most people didn’t think there was an audience there, but we’ve proven that there is from August to May.”