Major League Fishing (MLF) has proved to be a dominating force with bass fishing fans, towering over competitive bass fishing programming on television by most ratings and viewership measurements. With fans seeking content on Outdoor Channel, Sportsman Channel, World Fishing Network and others, MLF eclipses competitive bass fishing programming on television and easily stands alone as cable’s most-watched fishing competition.
“It’s clear to us, despite competitors’ claims to the contrary, that Major League Fishing is by far the preeminent viewing choice of bass fishing fans wanting to watch top-caliber competition on television,” Major League Fishing president and CEO Jim Wilburn stated. “Numbers don’t lie, and the ratings and viewership numbers back up our claims.”
> With more than 1,300 combined hours of television coverage, Major League Fishing, which airs on cable partners Outdoor Channel, Sportsman Channel, World Fishing Network, Discovery Channel and CBS Sports, has accounted for a staggering 86 percent of all viewership of competitive bass fishing programs on cable television during the past four quarters (Q3 2019 to Q2 2020).*
> During the 2020 season, Major League Fishing has averaged 97,000 viewing households in just its anchor time period on Outdoor Channel, making it the top-rated show on the network for the fifth consecutive year, surpassing the average number of households that viewed its top competitor’s championship series on ESPN2 by 3 percent despite its competitor benefitting from nearly triple the distribution.✝︎
> Fans of Major League Fishing seek it out regardless of the network, including World Fishing Network, which is delivering 10 percent more households than its top competitor’s elite series on Pursuit Channel, despite having just one-seventh of the distribution.✦
* Source – Comscore, Live+7 Average Audience, 7/1/19-6/28/20, Percent of cumulative viewing to all competitive fishing shows across all cable networks.
✝︎ Source – Nielsen, Live+7 Average Audience, 12/30/19-6/28/20, MLF: Outdoor Channel, Saturday 2P-4P vs. Bassmaster Classic, ESPN 2. Household Universe Estimates: ESPN2-82.5MM vs OUTD-30.5MM
✦ Source – Comscore, Live+7 Average Audience, 12/30/19-6/28/20, Program Average, Major League Fishing on WFN vs Bassmasters Elite Series on Pursuit.
