The embattled National Football League continues to hemorrhage fans at record speeds, with owners, players, and officials stunned at empty stadiums throughout the United States during the organization’s flagship ‘Sunday Night Football.’
Fans who decided to attend Sunday night’s match-up between the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants posted photos of the deserted stadium on social media, saying “lots of empty seats 10 mins into the game.”
Other fans also noticed the lack of people filling the stadium in Cleveland, as the Baltimore Ravens took on the Browns, posting “Plenty of empty seats in Cleveland today.”
https://twitter.com/Sean_CecilWhig/status/942455822793273344
The NFL is struggling to turn the page from a disastrous 2017 season, with furious fans changing the channel and deciding to stay home after months of protesting players “taking a knee” during the performance of the national anthem.
The League has yet to announce any changes that would prohibit political demonstrations on the field.
NO THANKS: 'Sunday Night Football' Ratings PLUMMET to Lowest Levels in 2017
The National Football League continued to see its ratings slip over the weekend, with their flagship ‘Sunday Night Football’ game falling to the lowest-levels seen this season, reports Deadline Hollywood.
The head-to-head match-up between the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans saw yet another drop in television ratings over the weekend, dipping three points just hours after Vice President Mike Pence stormed out of another NFL game after athletes protested the national anthem.
“In a seemingly ever-escalating political atmosphere for the ratings-battered league, that marks a 3% dip from last week’s [Sunday Night Football] when the Seattle Seahawks beat the Indianapolis Colts 46-18. That is also a season low for SNF in a season that has been mired in controversy and ratings decline,” said the article.
The beleaguered league is under fire from angry fans after weeks of player protests during the performance of the national anthem, with many choosing to “take a knee” as the stadium salutes the men and women of the US armed forces. As a result, ratings for the NFL have been in a free fall; with ticket sales, merchandise, and television viewership all down from this time last year.
The President kicked off a media firestorm last month when he called for national boycott of the National Football League until owners and officials ban player protests during the national anthem. After weeks, several teams -such as the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins- have announced that all players will stand at attention during the ‘Star-Spangled Banner.’
NO THANKS: ESPN Considers DROPPING 'Monday Night Football'
As NFL ticket sales dwindle and ratings plummet throughout the United States, ESPN is considering dropping its marquee ‘Monday Night Football’ programming as angry fans tune-out after months of player protests.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, sagging viewership and dismal ratings are forcing television network’s to re-think their approach to the National Football League, with executives considering reducing ‘Thursday Night Football’ to just ten games and dropping ‘Monday Night Football’ altogether.
“ESPN has been able to pull off a dramatic judo move in recent agreements with its affiliates, one whose importance cannot be overstated: There is no longer specific contract language that requires the cable giant to have NFL games in order to earn its lofty (and industry-envied) subscriber fees, currently more than $7 per household. This means the network would not face automatic decreases in that vital artery of its dual revenue stream,” writes the author.
“Sure, distributors would be aghast, demanding to negotiate lower fees probably immediately, but the point is, there would be negotiations, enabling ESPN to do everything it could to keep those numbers as high as possible,” the article adds.
The NFL is struggling to ease tensions with furious fans over their professional athletes’ months-long protest of the national anthem. As ratings plummet, owners and officials are beginning to bar their players from “taking a knee” before the game. Earlier this month, just two teams –the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins- banned their athletes from “disrespecting” the anthem and the flag.
h/t Daily Caller