MLL Reaches Record Number of Viewers in 2019
Published on October 30, 2019 under Major League Lacrosse (MLL) News Release
Boston, MA - The 2019 season was a historic success for Major League Lacrosse with potential viewership of just over 724 million. Major League Lacrosse reached a record number of households this year through an expanded relationship with ESPN, a new broadcast partner in WatchStadium, new streaming capabilities on its website and two new local RSN deals.
This year, four MLL games (All-Star, both semi-final games, and the MLL Championship) were televised nationally by ESPN. The reach of those four games was 297 million total household viewers. ESPN SportsCenter featured eight MLL plays on the SC Top 10 throughout the season, more than any other field lacrosse league. ESPN also carried weekly regular-season games on its domestic streaming platform, ESPN+ and internationally, on ESPN Player. ESPN Player also offered the All-Star Game, Semifinal Games and the 2019 MLL Championship to an international fanbase.
The marquee events were called by some of the top announcers in the sport including Emmy Award winning broadcaster Joe Beninati, lacrosse mainstay Quint Kessenich, and National Lacrosse Hall of Famer Don Zimmerman.
WatchStadium, a joint venture of Sinclair Broadcasting, the Walt Disney Company, the NHL and MLB, and available to over 60 million linear US households, carried twelve games in 2019. Lax Sports Network continued its longstanding broadcast partnership with MLL, carrying twenty-one games in 2019 and MLL streamed fifteen games on its website this season.
At the team level, the Chesapeake Bayhawks entered into a new deal with local broadcast partner, Sinclair Broadcasting for all 16 of their regular season games in the 2019 season. The New York Lizards agreed to a deal with MSG Network to broadcast their games during the 2019 season. These join preexisting RSN deals between the Boston Cannons and NBC Sports Boston and the Denver Outlaws and Altitude Sports. Cumulatively across all broadcast partners, Major League Lacrosse had a reach of 724 million viewers.
MLL has already entered into discussions with their 2019 broadcast partners for the 2020 season and looks forward to having an expanded reach for their linear and digital broadcasts next year.
Major League Lacrosse Stories from October 30, 2019
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