Reality T.V. is Fueling American Interest in Niche Sports
What can a docuseries do for a niche sport?
Daniel Ricciardo, Sebastian Vettel, and Lewis Hamilton…three names that were unfamiliar to the average American before 2019. But these are the names of the 2018, 2017, and 2016 Monaco Grand Prix Champions, the most prestigious race in the F1 circuit. All this changed on March 8, 2019, when Netflix aired the first episode of Drive to Survive, a documentary series produced by Box to Box in collaboration with Formula One. This series gave viewers a behind-the-scenes look at the drivers and races of the Formula One World Championship.
What impact did “Drive to Survive” have on F1?
The success of this series speaks for itself.
- ESPN’s viewership of Formula 1 races has nearly doubled — up to 1.5 million views per race — since the show premiered.
- Two additional circuit stops have been added in the U.S.
- ESPN resigned a three-year broadcasting rights deal for $25–30mm / year — up from $5mm per in the previous contract.
Are other leagues following suit?
Other leagues have taken note and ordered the same remedy. The ATP, WTA, PGA, and ASO have all announced docuseries from Box To Box. Will the expected increase in interest put them in a better position to cash in during their subsequent media rights negotiations?
- The ASO, organizers of the Tour de France, will renegotiate media rights with broadcasters as their existing contract with NBC Sports ends in 2023.
- ATP & Sinclair’s Tennis Channel signed a multi-year contract extension in Fall 2020 — ESPN stepped away from its coverage at Indian Wells and the US Open Series. The Tennis Channel has been an ATP partner since 2003.
- WTA & Tennis Channel signed a 5-year contract in 2018. Perhaps they will be the first to benefit from the upcoming Netflix docuseries.
- PGA will have the longest runway to collect — their new contract went into effect this year with an 8-year contract ending in 2030 with CBS Sports and NBC Sports.
Only time will tell how these docuseries will impact the popularity of the sports, but one thing is certain — with Covid restrictions at the Australian Open, the inauguration of the LIV tour, and an action-packed Tour de France, these docuseries will be just as drama-filled as the current “Drive to Survive” episodes are!
Which leagues could benefit next?
Champions League: Soccer is the most watched sport in the world, yet the champions league finals only averaged 2.8mm viewers in the US this year. This pales in comparison with the Super Bowl, which attracted 112mm American viewers.
Women’s Champions League: Barcelona sold out the quarterfinal Champions League game at Camp Nou versus Real Madrid — 85,000 tickets. Then proceeded to sell out their semifinal first leg match against Wolfsburg at Camp Nou in just 24 hours. The popularity of Women’s soccer, as of now, is constrained by viewers’ access to the sport. A docuseries is precisely what it needs to garner the interest of a major media broadcasting deal.
American Criterium Cycling: Cycling in the United States has been on life-support ever since Lance Armstrong’s doping scandal. In its current UCI WorldTour form, it is also a challenging sport to follow or even explain…Six-hour stage races spanning multiple days with different category winners and jerseys diminish its attractiveness, but a new racing series has taken the United States by storm — American Criterium Cup — with sponsors such as Red Bull and Outside TV sponsoring events, corporations sponsoring teams, 6-figure cash prizes, 30+ mph pelotons for 60–90 minutes, and crashes along a closed course circuit with crowd-lined barriers, it is a version of the sport that is more akin to Formula 1 Racing than to long-distance marathons. A docuseries following the professional teams through the circuit could be mutually beneficial.
NCAA Sports: On July 1, 2022, the NCAA began allowing college athletes to benefit from their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). This ruling has allowed athletes to participate financially in the $14.4bn college sports industry. Top athletes have earned the title of “NILionaire” after signing multi-million dollar endorsement contracts. Yet college athletics still don't have the viewership that their professional counterparts draw in. The College Football Playoffs averaged 18.9mm viewers, while the NFL divisional playoff games averaged 38.2mm domestic viewers. The permittance of student-athlete N.I.L. pay opens up an opportunity for a docuseries mimicking HBO’s Hard Knox to come along and bolster interest in either College’s flagship events such as the College Football Playoffs and NCAA Basketball’s “March Madness” Tournament or undercovered events such as NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Championships or NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament.
