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Newcastle boost television audiences

The return of Newcastle United to the Premier League helped to boost television viewing figures, reflecting the size and loyalty of their support base and the extent to which they interest those of us whose teams are not in the top flight.

Whenever Newcastle are involved in a match, particularly away from St. James's Park, this is reflected in high viewing figures. The other factor that has boosted viewing figures are better performances by Liverpool and, to an extent, Manchester United. I have great respect and affection for Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp has increased the sense of excitement surrounding the club.

A year ago figures from the Broadcasters Audience Research Bureau (Barb) showed a seven year low. Sky's average number of viewers fell 14 per cent for 2016/17 compared with the previous year while BT Sport were down 2 per cent (from a smaller base).

One has to be cautious about Barb figures as they do not reflect the new ways in which content is being accessed. It does not cover those watching via tablets. mobile devices or streaming services, nor anyone who watches pre-match or post-match content on television (I think that Quest are doing a good job with their coverage of the Football League).

The start of the 2016/17 season was affected by it coinciding with the Rio Olympics which naturally interested sports fans. The first two months of the 2017/18 season showed a significant recovery from the year before with Sky drawing in average of 819,000 viewers a match and BT Sport 692,000.

Of course, increasingly the really important audiences, especially for sponsors, are outside the UK.

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