Competitive Info: Streaming Makes Gains in Sports Viewership as TV Struggles.

Broadcast television’s share of viewing declined year over year (YoY) in October despite a slight month over month (MoM) increase driven by the NFL season, according to Nielsen’s total TV and streaming estimates. Streaming platforms continued to grow their share, underscoring the shift of live sports audiences to digital services.

Broadcast viewership share fell 1.1 percentage points from a year earlier to 22.9%. Overall sports programming on broadcast networks dropped 6.4% from September, but NFL broadcasts lifted the sector’s total viewing share by 0.6 percentage points, offsetting declines in other sports.

Cable networks’ share dropped more than 4% YoY to 22.2%.

Streaming increased its share from 40.5% to 45.7% vs. October 2024, up from 45.2% in September. YouTube led the gains, rising to a 12.9% share from 10.6% a year earlier. Netflix posted smaller growth, increasing to an 8% share from 7.5% in October 2024.

Audiences and advertisers are rapidly shifting to digital sports platforms as consumption habits change. Digital live sports viewership has already surpassed traditional TV and continues to grow. Digital live sports viewers are expected to rise 8.3% year over year in 2025, according to an Emarketer forecast, while overall live sports viewership is projected to grow 0.6%.

Advertisers are finding more value in digital live sports placements. Streaming ads during major live sporting events such as NFL games are “66% more effective than cable and broadcast ads,” according to EDO.

Netflix’s NFL Christmas Day games were “84% more effective than the average NFL broadcast for entertainment brands,” EDO reported, while Peacock’s Week 1 Brazil game broadcast was “116% more effective than average TV ads.”

As streaming platforms capture the largest share of ad-supported TV viewing — 45.3%, compared with broadcast’s 26% and cable’s 28.7%, according to Nielsen — advertisers are increasingly shifting budgets to digital.