Networks, advertisers look to score with kids-focused live sports telecasts

Live sports telecasts are not just for grownups any more.

Several sports-rights holders are rolling out new programming for kids in a bid to reach younger viewers and tap into more advertising revenue. Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc.'s regional sports network Bally Sports West (US) added youth-friendly facts and graphics, as well as a 10-year-old reporter, to its telecast of a June NBA playoff game. A month earlier, The Walt Disney Co.'s ESPN2 (US) carried an NBA game that was Avengers-animated and themed. Before that, ViacomCBS Inc.'s Nickelodeon/Nick At Nite (US) provided slime-filled coverage of an NFL Wild Card game, with everyone from SpongeBob to CBS (US)'s Young Sheldon popping up to help explain the rules.

While sports programming for kids is not entirely new, such content is enjoying a newfound momentum. Analysts and network executives say kid-friendly telecasts could help introduce the next generation of sports fans to watching live, linear, ad-supported programming — a critical goal for industry executives concerned about younger audiences' attraction to streaming. But networks must proceed cautiously to ensure the content and its associated advertising is age appropriate.

"If parents are throwing a watch party around a cool football game, they don't want to see something inappropriate," like a beer ad, said Adam Gajo, a football coach at Drake University and a former analyst with Kagan, a media research group within S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Ratings reviews

On the ratings front, national telecasts have shown there is some appetite for sports programming on kid- and family-oriented networks. But the results have been somewhat uneven.

Nickelodeon's coverage of the New Orleans-Chicago NFL Wild Card game on Jan. 10 averaged 2.06 million viewers, according to data from Nielsen Holdings PLC. That delivery represented 6.7% of the combined total audience of 30.7 million in conjunction with CBS.

"The social impressions on that game were over 2 billion. It was trending on Twitter all afternoon. So it exceeded all of our expectations," Nickelodeon President Brian Robbins said in an interview with S&P Global Market Intelligence.

However, Freeform (US)'s watch party format for the Baltimore-Tennessee NFL Wild Card game on Jan. 10 did not resonate as well with its teen and young adult audience, contributing just 67,000 viewers to The Walt Disney Co.'s collective "MegaCast" viewership of 24.8 million on networks ABC (US), ESPN (US) and ESPN2, which are also owned by Disney. MegaCast is a multi-telecast format that shares game content across multiple linear and streaming networks, with differentiated lead-ins and talent depending on each participating network's targeted demographic.

Disney subsequently had more success with its Avengers-themed Golden State-New Orleans NBA game, which aired May 3 on ESPN2. "NBA Special Edition: Marvel's Arena of Heroes" tallied 274,000 viewers on ESPN2, while ESPN's traditional telecast averaged 1.12 million. The alternate telecast represented 19.7% of the combined 1.39 million viewers. Streaming service ESPN+ also had the Avengers stream but was not measured by Nielsen. Marvel Studios, which produces the Avengers movies, is owned by Disney.

"We are always looking to expand our audience, and we all know the value of reaching younger viewers. The 'NBA Special Edition: Marvel's Arena of Heroes' certainly met those goals," said Stephanie Druley, ESPN's executive vice president of event and studio production. Druley said the average age of the viewer for the ESPN2 presentation was nine years younger than the average for a regular season NBA game.

Freeform did not respond to requests for comment.

Next-gen fans

Regardless of ratings, Gajo sees several reasons why the NFL, NBA and other leagues would want to attract younger viewers with kid-friendly telecasts on alternative networks.

"The window for kids to connect with sports through traditional telecasts is relatively short, so it's worth trying to gain interest with these alternative pilots," Gajo said.

Ratings slides for key live sporting events including the Super Bowl underscore the need for leagues to seed a path to connect future audience to live, linear sports programming. CBS averaged 91.6 million viewers with its coverage of Super Bowl LV, down 8.9% from 100.5 million from FOX's presentation of Super Bowl LIV.

The NFL in its latest round of rights deals said it expects league media partners to offer more alternative telecasts like the ones that aired in the 2020 postseason, as well as broader interactive offerings in traditional game coverage. The leagues are also striking out to make such content directly as well: Now 9 Story Media Group recently entered into a development deal with the THINK450, the content and partnership arm of the National Basketball Players Association, around two hoops-themed series in kids and family entertainment space: "King of the Court," a CG-animated and live-action hybrid series, and "Streetball," a live-action series aimed at kids ages 6-11.

After the success of the Wild Card game on Nickelodeon, "All the leagues have come to us wanting to do stuff with us," Robbins said.

While home market rules and existing rights deals will limit how much live sports Nickelodeon can broadcast, the network is reviewing options for highlights packages and other content.

"As time goes on here, I think you'll see us do some different types of things, just not necessarily games," Robbins said, adding that the network is "deep into development on a golf idea right now that we'll probably do next year as well."

Watchdogs weigh in

Some advocacy groups, however, have concerns about the rising number of sports telecasts aimed at families and children.

Some of those concerns are broader than sports programming, such as questions about the amount of screen time inherent for a child watching a three-hour-plus live sports game. But one of the most common concerns has to do with advertising.

"What we've seen historically and even more so now, the TV commercials that air during live sports events are more graphic, more explicit, more violent, more profane," said Parents Television and Media Council President Tim Winter in an interview.

Live sports programming should be "the epitome of reality television for all ages," Winter said, but noted that the content around it — whether in an ad, a series promo or a Super Bowl halftime show — can be problematic.

In the case of Nickelodeon's Wild Card presentation, the network made sure advertising was appropriate for younger audiences.

"Most of the advertisers wanted to be seen in both of the broadcasts. There were a handful of spots where the content probably wasn't appropriate for the Nick audience, so we either substituted different ads or gave the time back to on-air promotion," said CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus in an interview. Beer ads, for instance, did not run during the Nickelodeon presentation.

The Marvel-themed NBA game on ESPN2, which is not a network that targets younger audiences specifically, carried the same ad spots as ESPN's traditional telecast.

But the commercial spots are not all that worry David Monahan, campaign manager for the watchdog group Fairplay, formerly known as the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood. Monahan noted that in the case of the Marvel-themed NBA game and the slime-filled NFL Wild Card event, the games themselves could be seen as ads.

"The NFL broadcast wasn't just about getting kids interested in the NFL, it was about getting kids interested in Nickelodeon. The NBA broadcast wasn't just about introducing basketball to young kids, it was about promoting Marvel superheroes," Monahan said. "When you bring those two brands together … in what is essentially a program-length advertisement, that's not fair."

Robbins said Nickelodeon worked to make sure its Wild Card telecast was different from and additive to the regular CBS version. "We are always very conscious about what we're making and how we're presenting it. You can't please everybody, but this particular broadcast was overwhelmingly loved by parents and kids alike," the network executive said.