This article continues my series of monthly updates on the ratings and attendances of club football games in Australia across all four codes.
This month’s list is of even greater interest given the mega broadcasting deals the NRL and AFL have managed to negotiate in the last few weeks (noting that the NRL is yet to negotiate the Pay TV or online components of their deal).
Once again the NRL had the highest rating game on Fox with the Round 24 top of the table clash between the Sydney Roosters and Brisbane Broncos (322,000).
The NRL had one other game rate over 300,000, another Saturday night clash between top four teams, the Round 25 clash between the Storm and Cowboys (301,000).
All in all, the NRL had six of the top 10 rating games, a reminder to all that the NRL remains extremely important to Fox Sports (of which they will be reminded in upcoming negotiations).
The AFL had the second highest rating game, with the Sydney Swans versus Collingwood attracting 317,000 viewers.
Another top of the table clash, between the two West Australian teams, had the equal fourth highest rating game (275,000).
The AFL had the top 18 most attended matches for August, starting with the Fremantle versus GWS Giants game (34,625) and culminating with the recent Collingwood versus Richmond match (63,178).
In all, there were four AFL games which attracted over 50,000 patrons, with the second best attended match being Geelong versus Hawthorn (55,802).
The Adelaide Crows hosted the third and fourth best attended games, in fact, the Adelaide Crows had three home games among the top six most attended games: versus the Eagles (53,445); versus Richmond (50,094) and versus Brisbane Lions (46,609).
Both Adelaide teams have had an extraordinary season in 2015 in terms of attendances.
In the NRL, the Broncos had the best attended game, coming in at 19th overall with its match against Canterbury-Bankstown (34,082), and also the next highest with its match against the Dragons (33,480).
As an aside, I often get asked about free-to-air ratings, which is a far more complicated exercise than many realise, however, on this occasion, I am able to provide figures on the four highest rating games for August.
1. NRL, North Queensland versus Souths, Metro: 631,000; Regional: 407,000; Total: 1,038,000.
2. AFL, Sydney Swans versus Collingwood, Metro: 676,000; Fox: 317,000; Total: 993,000.
3. NRL, Brisbane versus St George Illawarra, Metro: 612,000; Regional: 360,000; Total: 972,000.
4. NRL, Souths versus Canterbury-Bankstown, Metro: 612,000; Regional: 322,000; Total: 934,000.
One interesting aspect about these figures is the importance of regional ratings to the NRL. It’s also interesting the extent to which an AFL game is able to get high ratings on both platforms despite being simulcast.
Unfortunately, I do not have available any regional ratings for the one AFL game above, but the Tasmanian ratings alone would have been enough to push that game into the top spot (a reminder as to why I try not to worry myself too much with FTA ratings).
Fox TV Ratings for August
1. Sydney Roosters versus Brisbane Broncos: 322k
2. Sydney Swans versus Collingwwod: 317k
3. Melbourne Storm versus North Queensland: 301k
4. Manly versus Brisbane Broncos: 275k
5. Fremantle versus West Coast Eagles: 275k
6. Sydney Roosters versus Parramatta: 270k
7. Canberra Raiders versus Wests Tigers: 267k
8. Geelong versus Collingwood: 254k
9. West Coast Eagles versus Western Bulldogs: 253k
10. North Queensland versus Canberra Raiders: 252k
11. Cronulla versus North Queensland: 249k
12. New Zealand Warriors versus North Queensland: 248k
13. Cronulla versus Melbourne Storm: 247k
14. Hawthorn versus Port Adelaide: 245k
15. Gold Coast Titans versus Paramatta: 244k
16. Geelong versus Hawthorn: 241k
17. Newcastle Knights versus Canterbury-Bankstown: 237k
18. Adelaide Crows versus Richmond: 234k
19. North Melbourne versus Western Bulldogs: 228k
20. Adelaide Crows versus West Coast Eagles: 224k
21. North Melbourne versus Fremantle: 204k
22. St Kilda versus Geelong: 202k
23. Sydney Swans versus Adelaide Crows: 197k
24. Wests Tigers versus Newcastle Knights: 190k
25. St Kilda versus Geelong: 190k
26. New Zealand Warriors versus St George Illawarra: 184k
27. West Coast Eagles versus Hawthorn: 184k
28. Essendon versus Richmond: 183k
29. Canberra Raiders versus Penrith: 179k
30. Port Adelaide versus GWS Giants: 174k
31. Canberra Raiders versus Manly: 173k
32. Cronulla versus Wests: 171k
33. Geelong versus Sydney Swans: 169k
34. Penrith versus New Zealand Warriors: 165k
35. Brisbane Lions versus Gold Coast Suns: 164k
36. Parramatta versus Penrith : 163k
37. Collingwood versus Richmond: 162k
38. Gold Coast Titans versus Canberra Raiders: 161k
39. St George Illawarra versus Newcastle Knights: 160k
40. Melbourne Demons versus North Melbourne: 158k
41. Collingwood versus Melbourne Demons: 155k
42. Port Adelaide versus St Kilda: 153k
43. Fremantle versus GWS Giants: 150k
Attendances for August
1. Collingwood versus Richmond: 63,178
2. Geelong versus Hawthorn: 55,802
3. Adelaide Crows versus West Coast Eagles: 53,445
4. Adelaide Crows versus Richmond: 50,094
5. Collingwood versus Carlton: 48,133
6. Adelaide Crows versus Brisbane Lions: 46,609
7. Fremantle versus West Coast Eagles: 41,959
8. Geelong versus Collingwood: 40,582
9. Sydney Swans versus Adelaide Crows: 38,690
10. Richmond versus Gold Coast Suns: 38,508
11. Sydney Swans versus Collingwood: 38,408
12. Collingwood versus Melbourne: 37,894
13. Essendon versus Richmond: 37,864
14. West Coast Eagles versus Western Bulldogs: 37,733
15. North Melbourne versus Western Bulldogs: 37,299
16. Port Adelaide versus St Kilda: 36,850
17. West Coast Eagles versus Hawthorn 34,843
18. Fremantle versus GWS Giants: 34,625
19. Brisbane Broncos versus Canterbury-Bankstown: 34,082
20. Carlton versus Melbourne Demons: 33,962
21. Fremantle versus Melbourne Demons: 33,529
22. Brisbane Broncos versus St George Illawarra: 33,480
23. Essendon versus Western Bulldogs: 33,466
24. Port Adelaide versus GWS Giants: 33,281
25. Melbourne Demons versus North Melbourne: 30,695
26. Hawthorn versus Port Adelaide: 28,657
27. Geelong versus Sydney Swans: 27,910
28. St Kilda versus Sydney Swans: 27,856
29. Western Bulldogs versus Melbourne Demons: 27,805
30. Souths versus Canterbury-Bankstown: 26,503
31. Essendon versus Adelaide Crows: 25,914
32. Carlton versus North Melbourne: 25,251
33. St Kilda versus Geelong: 25,245
34. North Melbourne versus Fremantle: 23,857
35. Newcastle Knights versus Canterbury-Bankstown: 23,604
36. Geelong versus Brisbane Lions: 21,914
37. Western Bulldogs versus Port Adelaide: 20,590
38. Brisbane Lions versus Gold Coast Suns: 20,025
39. GWS Gians versus Sydney Swans: 19,507
40. Sydney Roosters versus Brisbane Broncos: 19,137
41. New Zealand Warriors versus St George-Illawarra: 18,317
42. Brisbane Lions versus Carlton: 17,744
43. Newcastle Knights versus Sydney Roosters: 17,718
44. North Queensland versus Souths: 16,685
Mister Football
Roar Guru
NRL TV ratings for first week of finals: Brisbane Broncos vs North Queensland (Sat night): Metro FTA: 848k Regional: 497k Sky NZ: 33k Total: 1,378k Sydney Roosters vs Melbourne Storm (Fri night): Metro FTA: 755k Regional: 407k Sky NZ: 31k Total: 1,193k Canterbyry vs St George (Sat arvo): Metro FTA: 728k Regional: 373k Sky NZ: 44k Total: 1,145k Cronulla vs Souths (Sun arvo) Metro FTA: 738k Regional: Not avail. Sky NZ: 53k Total: 791k
Mister Football
Roar Guru
For those interested, I have some figures for the first week of finals. Attendances: 1. Richmond vs North Melbourne: 90,186 2. Western Bulldogs vs Adelaide Crows: 60,782 3. Brisbane Broncos vs North Queensland: 50,388 4. West Coast Eagles vs Hawthorn: 42,663 5. Fremantle vs Sydney Swans: 40,071 6. Canterbury-Bankstown vs St George Illawarra: 33,854 7. Cronulla vs Souths: 27,031 8. Sydney Roosters vs Melbourne Storm: 20,521 Ratings are a little bit more complicated, all four AFL finals games were on Fox, but the NRL finals are not. I happen to have all the AFL finals ratings across all platforms, so I will put these up, and if I can get something similar for the NRL finals, I'll put them up separately: AFL TV ratings (FTA and Fox) West Coast Eagles vs Hawthorn (Fri night): Metro FTA: 993k Regional: 159k Fox: 409k Total: 1,561k Western Bulldogs vs Adelaide Crows (Sat night): Metro FTA: 884k Regional: 144k Fox: 378k Total: 1,406k Fremantle vs Sydney Swans (Sat arvo): Metro FTA: 764k Regional: 234k Fox: 334k Total: 1,332k Richmond vs North Melbourne (Sun twi) Metro FTA: 742k Regional: Not avail. Fox: 348k Total: 1,090k
clipper
Guest
Renegade - this is exactly why Mr Football does not include the FTA figures - as all games of AFL are on Foxtell and 4 are on FTA, there is obviously crossover and when added together would give a bigger total - not to mention the minefield that is regional ratings, so I only commented on figures above.
duecer
Guest
Don't think it matters that much - if crowds were good then TV figures wouldn't be as high, and that's where the money comes from. Whether, in the long term, this will pan out so well, time will tell. As Tennis Australia found out, once you ignore the basics like grass roots and everyday fans, then it can be a slow slide down and hard to turn around.
Crosscoder
Roar Guru
Ghost of Billy Moore No one likes empty stadiums,was Remondis,Suncorp,Townsville stadiums empty last weekend. Too busy watching the NRC ? You are comparing a one off RWC to 8 NRL games each week.' A world game" ,an International game to be precise. Unfortunately not too many around the world or in this country will be watching this event. If RL is an endangered marsupial in this country,then its sister code is a Tasmanian Tiger. Rarely if ever sighted.
Mister Football
Roar Guru
Thanks offsider, that's much appreciated.
offsider
Guest
Thanks Mr Football ,I know you have copped some stick for this series during the year,but well done.
Renegade
Roar Guru
Not on Free to Air... only one AFL game and 4 in the top 5. 6 NRL games in the top 10 on Pay. You can try and BS your way through to keep your agenda though.
Mister Football
Roar Guru
Some interesting numbers from the last round of the home and away seasons for both comps (which will appear in the September edition). Broncos had the biggest attendance of the weekend: 1. Brisbane Broncos vs Melbourne Storm: 44,015 2. Collingwood vs Essendon: 42,270 3. Richmond vs North Melbourne: 40,461 4. Port Adelaide vs Freo: 38,633 5. West Coast Eagles vs St Kilda: 36,165 and NRL dominated the Fox ratings for the weekend: 1. St George Illawarra vs Wests: 257k 2. North Queensland vs Titans: 243k 3. Richmond vs North: 237k 4. Canterbury vs Warriors: 194k 5. Penrith vs Newcastle Knights: 179k
Mister Football
Roar Guru
Once upon a time, I would have thought the same thing, and there's no denying that sitting on the couch watching a game on TV, you are more likely to get into it if there's a buzz at the ground - but - NRL ratings have been strong forever - so clearly the size of the crowds at NRL games is not a factor. Also, people often miss that the NRL crowds are quite consistent, the majority sit between 12,000 and 17,000, and with the wings normally taken up, the crowds look quite reasonable at most games. A lot of AFL games are played at the MCG, where it can look sparse even with 40,000 in the joint, so maybe it's just not that big a deal.
At work
Roar Rookie
That's a fair call in regards to families not attending due to very cold weather. For everyone else, it reinforces the point about being a club member though, so if you've already got your tickets then you're more likely not to use cold weather as an excuse.
Numbers Man
Guest
NRL has struggled to hit the 2010 high of 3.14 million in the regular season and has been on the slide since then , we are about 2005 levels with the crowds. I pull the stats for 2014 and 2015 and the % change , interesting Brisbane has 13% of the total crowds so it vital that they do well every year so that the NRL cant maintain a good record. To put it in perspective 2.5 big crowds is Gold Coast Titans entire season. If Brisbane don't make the finals its approx. 50,000 less across the season but that doesn't take into account the increase from other clubs. Generally across the clubs the attendance ebbs and flows noting the most club have decreased since 2010 but dropped and picked up again. Apart from Newcastle and Titans. Titians are a real worry for me they were is strife with finance and the coke saga still hasn't played out.. They have consistently dropped 1500 to 2000 back on back since 2007 and are yet to hit the bottom. They will be looking at 11,000 to 12,000 av next year. But you can see why getting the TV rights and ratings are so important. 2015 2014 %Change Total Att. % Brisbane 403136 400244 0.7 13.9 Canterbury 236212 185097 27.6 8.2 Souths 199359 238658 -16.5 6.9 North Queensland 194759 175360 11.1 6.7 Newcastle 190691 211392 -9.8 6.6 Sydney Roosters 187932 169224 11.1 6.5 New Zealand 176445 205569 -14.2 6.1 Parramatta 175156 225457 -22.3 6.1 St George Illawarra 163811 192673 -15.0 5.7 Melbourne 161441 178728 -9.7 5.6 Cronulla 143009 151572 -5.6 4.9 Wests Tigers 140504 157243 -10.6 4.9 Penrith 138531 137549 0.7 4.8 Gold Coast Titans 134828 158325 -14.8 4.7 Manly 131464 151354 -13.1 4.5 Canberra 115550 115298 0.2 4.0 2892828
The Ghost of Billy Moore
Guest
Empty stadiums at RL games is like watching the Dapto dogs at the TAB, no atmosphere; and in the long run that will hurt the attraction of the game. Watch the crowds and passion in Europe at the RWC, a world game. RL in Australia is an endangered marsupial.
spruce moose
Guest
I don't usually go out and defend those in Canberra whom don't attend winter night footy. It's 3 degrees before the wind chill. Secondly, people are generally sitting down and staying still...makes them even colder. And finally,it's 3 degrees when the game starts. It's zero when it finishes. The parents have kids, it's silly to needlessly expose them to cold. A fairer draw would give the Raiders day games during the winter months and night games at the start of the season.
Damo
Guest
Good article. TV ratings will hinge on crowds as they generate the atmosphere which generates the viewers. Boutique 15-20k stadiums are the future not 30k plus stadiums.
Ken
Guest
I think they care, not as much as they do about ratings, but they still care. I suppose some of the explanation might be in the teams flying high - the Top 4 is Roosters, Brisbane, Cowboys & Storm. Brisbane is doing fine of course, but the others have a pretty small 'bandwagon affect' (to coin a term). When teams like the Dogs, Dragons, Tigers, Souths, Eels are having a great season, they can draw on a huge latent supporter base, but these teams not so much. The Cowboys simply don't have that many people local to them, most of the people that like the Storm already are members and the Roosters are already doing about as well as they can. The Cowboys and Storm don't fare that well for away fans either. Still, I think the NRL would be disappointed by the fall, the last few years has had a decent rise with memberships and crowds and they wouldn't want it going backwards, even if the true financial health of the comp is the TV ratings.
Ken
Guest
I've seen others put that view forward too but with Thursday's cemented as a regular game it seems a bridge too far to have a regular Monday game as well. The scheduling, already difficult, enters nightmare territory. I suppose if the money is good enough though they'll find a way.
At work
Roar Rookie
Ok, then bush games should also be ignored. Canberra playing in 3 degree weather shouldn't be an excuse, that type of temp is common in Winter. People who live in Canberra I would imagine have clothing suitable to that weather, whereas I live in Sydney and don't own a jacket that could handle low temps like that
no one in particular
Roar Guru
Canberra v Newcastle was played in about 3 degeees Penrith v Gold Coast and Manly v Canberra were played in the bush
clipper
Guest
Really shows up here - just one game, of course Brisbane, in the top 20! Of course they will say viewing figures are everything, which was 10 each in the top 20.