CINCINNATI—E.W. Scripps said its the first season of National Women's Soccer League on Ion broadcasts—matches and studio shows—reached more than 20.5 million total unique viewers, including 13.5 viewers unique to the network.
Scripps Sports televised Saturday night doubleheaders on Ion throughout the season, a total of 50 matches—more than any other network—and 53 studio shows. Ion was among the networks involved in a multiyear distribution agreement announced in November 2023 that included CBS Sports, ESPN and Prime Video.
Ion delivered more than 130 hours of NWSL content during the season.
“NWSL fans consistently showed up to watch Ion every week,” Scripps Sports president Brian Lawlor said. “It was an incredible first year. We expect to continue growing the audience and helping the league grow its fan base.”
League officials agreed.
“Our matches on Ion brought incredible NWSL content to fans everywhere,” added Brian Gordon, NWSL senior vice president of broadcast. "Beyond the matches, the ability to go in depth with our athletes and give them a platform to amplify their own stories helped our fans grow an even deeper affinity for the players, clubs and league. We are very proud of our collaboration with Scripps Sports and look forward to continuing our work together next season.”
Other highlights of the audiences on NWSL on Ion included:
- Ion delivered the largest share of female viewers of any network (57% of the P25-54 audience, 55% of the persons 2-plus).
- 50% of all NWSL viewers watched matches on Ion, the highest percentage of all linear broadcast partners.
- Matches drew an average audience of 145,000 viewers 2-plus per game, with a high of 234,000 on July 6 for Orlando-Kansas City.
- NWSL matches on Ion delivered more than 3.6 million hours of viewing across free ad-supported television (FAST) channels, including Roku, Samsung TV, LG, Vizio, Xumo, Plex, Amazon Fire TV Channels, Pluto, The CW and Tablo.
- Scripps Sports formed more than two dozen advertising partnerships, including Capital One as presenting sponsor of “NWSL on Ion Saturday Night Soccer.”
