Ever since NBC announced its plan to begin broadcasting the Premier League in the US, I've been skeptical of whether or not Americans would embrace the sport. Yes, I'm well aware that soccer is the number one most popular youth sport in America and that people gave a crap about Premier League in this country before 2013. But let's be honest, the number of fans was not staggering.
Over the past seven weeks, I have interviewed US-based Bluebirds to hear their thoughts on the state of Premier League popularity in the US. You'll find the latest interviewee's thoughts towards the end of this post, but here are the others' answers to the question, "Do you think the Premier League is growing in popularity in the US?":
- @IanPJ1927, "Yes I do."
- @lukeangevine, "I think it's growing. Young kids want to play more soccer. The exposure of the sport has grown with the help of NBC."
- @SonOfCrunch, "NBC has done an absolutely incredible job with their Premier League rollout this year...There's very little I'd like NBC to do that I believe would help grow the game."
- @OnlyMadeFor1D, "I think through NBC Sports and games like FIFA, the Premier League is getting more coverage in the US. I know a lot of people at my college that are obsessed with it."
- @pgnoble, "Without a doubt. In my local bar alone I notice that people are taking more notice and I can only see it growing further. Folks who would only be interested in talking about The Yankees or Red Sox ask me how Cardiff are doing and some have started to watch Premier League games regularly."
- @druidbar, "Definitely, more and more people are aware of soccer in general, Americans enjoy any sport that’s played at a high level."
OK so that's the opinion of six Americans, but Dragon and Bluebird readers are scholars who crave numbers. Do we have any facts to back up the opinions?
Actually we do.
A March press release from NBC stated that the network had posted "the [Premier] League's best-ever monthly audience in the U.S. in February." On average, 609,000 American viewers watched each Premier League match last month. And perhaps more interesting is the fact that, "the February viewership marks the second consecutive U.S. record monthly viewership for the Premier League, following the prior mark of [an average of] 492,000 viewers [per match]."
It is worth noting that the state of our domestic league, the MLS, is not so rosy. A January SportsBusiness article reports that the average TV viewership for a 2013 MLS match was 112,000. And that is down from the 2012 MLS average match viewership of 121,700.
These numbers might need a bit of context. As I mentioned last week, professional football is the most popular sport in America. According to a recent press release the NFL had a staggering average of 17.6 MILLION viewers per regular season broadcast in 2013.
NBC, which also carries NHL regular season games, stated in a press release that "NBC Sports Network’s coverage of the 2013 NHL regular season averaged 392,000 viewers".
I won't go through every sport we Americans watch, but you get the idea. The Premier League is gaining steam. Less than one season into NBC's new broadcast contract, soccer is officially more watched on television than the NHL, and it is growing in popularity every month.
Regardless of the country from which you watched, did you by any chance see the Baggies clash with the Bluebirds last weekend?
West Bromwich Albion 3 - Cardiff City 3
- Amalfitano (WBA) 2'
- Dorrans (WBA) 9'
- Mutch (CAR) 30'
- Caulker (CAR) 73'
- Bifouma Koulossa (WBA) 94'
- Daehli (CAR) 95'
Don't grimace at the score line. This was a heart attack-inducing, yet positive result for the Bluebirds.
Allow me to re-enact my match experience for you...
- 0-9 minutes: Watching on my iPad
- 9-31 minutes: Reading Steinbeck's "Log from the Sea of Cortez"
- 31-74 minutes: Peeking occaisionally at Twitter for score updates on my iPhone
- 74-94 minutes: Watching on my iPad
- 94-95 minutes: Biting the knuckle of my index finger so heard it left a mark
- 95th minute: Screaming so loud I disturbed my pug's third nap of the day (but only for a moment, his narcolepsy is legendary)
Who is this team that now scores not one, not two, but THREE goals on a regular basis? I looked back through the Cardiff City results this season. The Bluebirds scored three single-match goals in only one of their first 33 matches. They've done it now three time in the past four matches.
Sure, they now have the second worst Goals Allowed record in the league. But if I'm going to watch Cardiff City get relegated, I'd rather watch them go down in flames than with a whimper.
If you have a few moments, watch this NBC Sports recap of the match goals (Safe for work).
I rifled through the internet for a few of my favorite moments, here they are...
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| Steven Caulker revels with the away fans after equalizing the score (Image Credit: ProSoccerTalk on NBCSports) |
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| Mats Moller Daehli celebrates his last breath goal with Campbell, Caulker, and Mutch (Image Credit: Rui Vieira/AP Daehli) |
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| Ole Gunnar Solskjaer does the Ayatollah for the away fans (Image Credit: Reuters) |
After the match, Solskjaer told reporters that while Daehli kicked the ball it was the fans themselves who sucked it into the net.
However it happened, Cardiff City are still in the fight and perhaps like the Premier League in America also gaining steam.
With this draw, the Bluebirds are in 18th place with 6 wins, 8 draws, and 18 losses. The table below captures the full Premier League standings as of 03/31/14. The table columns are: Current Position (POS), Last Position (LP), Club Name (CLUB), Matches Played (P), Wins (W), Draws (D), Losses (L), Goals Fielded (GF), Goals Allowed (GA), Goal Differential (GD), and Rankings Points (PTS).
If we're being honest, the Bluebirds really did need a win this past weekend. A draw has moved them one spot closer to safety, but there are only six matches left now. I fear that most of those need to be Cardiff City wins if they are to survive.
If we look at the larger picture, the following clubs cannot be relegated:
- Liverpool
- Chelsea
- Manchester City
- Arsenal
- Everton
- Tottenham Hotspur
- Manchester United
Next week these are the results we need:
- Norwich City to beat West Bromwich Albion
- Tottenham Hotspur to beat Sunderland
- Aston Villa to beat Fulham
With these results, a win this weekend would leave Cardiff City tied with West Bromwich Albion at 17th.
Ok, that covers the match now let's commence with this week's "Meet a US Bluebird"!
Meet Adam Hawkes (@BankRobber303, 03/30/14)
Where do you live and where are you from originally?: I am originally from South San Diego but live in Littleton Colorado now. No ties to Wales.
How long have you been following the Bluebirds and how did you become a fan?: I've been following Cardiff just this year. I always enjoyed watching soccer, but never supported a club, mostly because it was rare to find a lot of games on American television, especially since most stations would rather play MLS games.
I became a fan the very first week the BPL was being shown on NBC. I was automatically sucked in. It was neat seeing a group of underdogs make such a big impact so quick.
What is your most favorite Cardiff City memory and why?: My favorite Cardiff moment would be when Cardiff beat Swansea in the South Wales Derby back in November. Learning about the history of that series and the intensity of the game was pretty epic.
After that game, I'd have to say, when Cardiff City tied Manchester United two weeks after they played the Derby. They already had 6 losses going into that game and people were already talking about relegation. It was great seeing the boys hold their own against such a good team.
Who is your most favorite current Cardiff City player?: My favorite player currently would be a draw between two players. David Marshall and Craig Bellamy. I think Marshall is one of the best keepers in the league, but doesn't get the credit he deserves being on a low ranking team. He's saved the teams ass far too many times this season. Put him on any other team and he'll shine.
I like Bellamy because, to me, he personifies the grit and toughness of the team. He's emotional and aggressive and doesn't back down. I like how he isn't afraid to get physical and is unapologetic about it all.
What makes Cardiff City important to you?: Cardiff is important to me because, being a new fan, its awesome to be a fan of a team with so much great history. Even now with the "revolt" going on against Vincent Tan, the poor season we're having and the changes in coaching, it's important to keep our eyes on the prize and keep up in the league and continue supporting our club, through thick and thin, win or lose.
What is your favorite US sport and team? Do you follow any MLS clubs?: I'm an ex hockey player, so I mostly follow hockey. My favorite team are the LA Kings, though a VERY close second are the Colorado Avalanche. Have to support the local boys.
I also support the Colorado Rapids of the MLS, though I'm a huge fan of Thierry Henry of the New York Red Bulls.
Do you think Premier League is growing in popularity in the US? What can NBC or the League itself do to grow its popularity in the US?: I would like to think the Premier League is growing. All of the clubs are getting close to equal amounts of TV time and with the MLS getting more and more popular, its only natural that Premier Clubs are getting the attention they deserve. One thing NBC could do more of would be to advertise the games more often, promote the big games and give people an opportunity to learn about the game. I think the more that people understand the rules, the more they'll end up being fans.
Thanks for the interview, Adam. Bellamy is a favorite player of mine as well. In fact I have his book "GoodFella" which I plan to review of before the end of the season.
As I mentioned, the season is winding down. The same is true for Fantasy. The Cardiff'rent Strokes have done very well for themselves and we are comfortably within the top one million players...
<Fantasy Comments>
- Rank (Last Week): 931,757
- Rank (This Week): 915,073
- Total Players: 3,204,055
Let's see if we can reach the top 800,000 in the next six weeks!
Cardiff City's next match is at home on April 5th against Crystal Palace. When these clubs last met in December, the Bluebirds suffered an embarrassing 0-2 defeat. Will the tables be turned against this fellow promotee and relegation candidate?
Tune in to Dragon and Bluebird next week to find out!
Thank you as always for reading. You can follow me on Twitter @dragon_bluebird. And feel free to leave some comments on my posts via Blogger. Would love to hear your thoughts on the season so far and I'm always open to suggestions for any features or topics you'd like to see on this blog. See you next week!
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