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The USFL debuted Saturday night, seizing two three-letter networks and a major streaming platform. This exposure resulted in a Total audience of three million for the game between the generals and the stallions.
The forecast number, according to the USFL, peaked at nearly 3.5 million at 10:45 p.m. ET.
For comparison, the AAF drew 2.9 million for its CBS debut on a Saturday night in 2019. The XFL debut in 2019 grossed 3.3 million on a Saturday afternoon in 2020.
There are three points to consider. First, week one’s AAF and XFL competitions were only broadcast on one major network, not two. Second, how would other programming have performed at these points? Third, these are projections from the USFL, not official numbers by whomever or where the currently accepted official numbers come from. As the world continues to shift and change in terms of viewing habits and devices, it seems it’s becoming a lot harder to track reliable numbers than it used to be.
Regardless of the measurement used, however it’s done, and whether the numbers from any source ever reflect the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth in terms of actual viewership, the question is whether people will continue to use the USFL will see. The trio of Sunday games on NBC, USA and FS1 was delayed by about an hour due to the weather and the images from Birmingham repeatedly showed a complete and complete lack of fans in the stands.
For any other football league, it becomes a lot harder to convince people to watch it on TV when they see that few close to the event have bothered to appear in person. Whether the solution is to give away tickets, give away food, give away both, not show pictures of empty seats, or play the games in a venue with no stands, the impact of large swaths of nothingness cannot be ignored.