ESPN has revealed audience data for 2022 that it says shows how it successfully reached sports fans in record numbers and expanded its reach through a multi-platform ecosystem across linear, streaming, digital and social outlets.
Highlights for the Disney-owned company included what was said to be strong viewership numbers for live event and studio programming, continued growth in the direct-to-consumer space, high quality storytelling content, “impactful” technological advancements and difference-making collaboration as part of the scale and scope of The Walt Disney Company.
The data showed that ESPN is set to finish 2022 as the leading full-time US cable network among Men and Adults 18-34, 18-49 and 25-52 in total day. This would mark the 31st consecutive year that ESPN has held the No. 1 spot for Men 18-34 and 18-49 specifically and 13 straight years No. 1 among people 18-34 and 18-49.For the ninth straight year, ESPN will be the No. 1 cable network in prime time among all key adult demos (P18-34, P18-49, P25-54).
ESPN added that to 13 December 2022 it accounted for the largest share of total sports minutes consumed of any nationally measured US network (broadcast or cable) year-to-date among total viewers and Adults 18-49 (22.5%).
Throughout 2022 ESPN led the sports media category in fan engagement this past year with 6.8 billion total actions across Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and Facebook, up 44% year on year. ESPN was also a top brand in the total social ecosystem, boasting four of the Top 50 most engaged brands overall: SportsCenter, ESPN, ESPN FC, and ESPN MMA (Shareablee).
Overall, ESPN Social averaged over 18 million social engagements per day across 30 different brands. ESPN generated over 20 billion views on YouTube, reaching over 300M unique viewers monthly while the SportsCenter programme on Instagram more than doubled the number of followers in the past three years, surpassing 32 million.
ESPN was also a key driver of The Walt Disney Company’s #1 position in social engagement among all US media companies, accounting for at least 70% of fan social interactions. ESPN remains a Top 3 most followed (surpassed 30 million mark) and engaged (2.6 billiomn) brand on TikTok.