Hispanic television audiences in the United States are driving higher viewership to mainstream sports programming, and helping to generate interest in sports franchises that have typically been underrepresented in the country, according to a new report from Nielsen.
The report released earlier this week said record viewership for key events like the UEFA Champions League and Copa América soccer tournaments were driven largely by an uptick in Hispanic audiences tuning in to traditional linear and streaming TV.
According to Nielsen, Hispanic TV viewers accounted for 73 percent of the Copa América audience in 2016. This year, that number dipped to 53 percent — which Nielsen said was proof that the tournament was going mainstream.
“[The dip] doesn’t mean that fewer Hispanics are watching, but rather that Copa has gained traction among non-Hispanic viewers,” Nielsen wrote in the report, adding that the trend is “a testament to the increasing influence and universal appeal of soccer, driven by the enthusiasm of Hispanic fans.”
That uptick in interest is also attracting new bids from television broadcasters. Eight years ago, the Copa América tournament was largely relegated to Spanish-language networks; this year, Fox Sports had the rights to the tournament, and aired key matches on the Fox broadcast network. (The rest aired on cable networks Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2.) Univision continues to hold the Spanish-language rights to the tournament.
While soccer has gone mainstream, Hispanic TV audiences are also gravitating toward other sports, including football, baseball and basketball. According to Nielsen, Hispanic TV viewers accounted for 10 percent of the Super Bowl’s audience in 2016, a figure that jumped to 14 percent this year. Hispanic TV viewers also accounted for 10 percent of the TV audience that tuned in to watch some or all of the World Series in 2016, a figure that increased to 15 percent in 2023. (This year’s World Series tournament will air next month.)
The number of Hispanic TV viewers tuning in to watch the NBA Championship increased 50 percent over the past three years, while the same audience saw a 51 percent increase in viewership to the Super Bowl during the same time period, Nielsen said.
The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) has also seen more interest among Hispanic TV viewers, with a 354 percent lift in audience over the past three years, likely owed to the fact that more WNBA games are airing on free television networks like ABC, CBS and Scripps-owned Ion.
“As the U.S. Hispanic population grows, the community will continue to boost the fan bases of all sports,” Nielsen said. “This cultural exchange enriches the sports landscape as Hispanic fans bring their passion to games like football, baseball and basketball. ”
The full Nielsen report is available to download by clicking or tapping here.
