Christmas Edition Of WWE SmackDown Draws Best Ratings Since Fox Debut
The Blue Brand Went Full Throttle For Christmas...
WWE’s December 25 episode of SmackDown drew the highest amount of viewers since the Blue Brand's debut on Fox in 2019.
Averaging 3.303 million views, this is a strong end to 2020 for SmackDown, which has been gathering praise from fans and critics alike in recent months.
SmackDown drew a 0.96 rating in the 18-49 demographic, up 60 percent from the last time the show aired on Fox two weeks earlier. That beat everything else on the networks with the exception of the NFL coverage and the NBA Christmas night game on ABC. SmackDown also beat everything on cable for the day with the exception of another NBA game on ESPN.
In the 18-34 demographic, SmackDown averaged a 0.68 rating. That also beat everything else on the networks except NFL coverage and the NBA. That more than doubled the 0.3 rating SmackDown did the last time it aired on Fox.
Year-over-year, SmackDown was up 35.9 percent in total viewers and 37.1 percent in 18-49. It was also up 70 percent in the 18-34 demo. Good news for WWE.
WWE pre-recorded the December 25 episode from the Thunderdome at Tropicana Field and loaded the card appropriately, knowing the preceding NFL game between the Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints could help with viewership numbers.
On SmackDown, Big E became the new Intercontinental Champion by defeating Sami Zayn in a Lumberjack Match. Elsewhere WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns retained the title in a Cage Match against Kevin Owens, and Women’s Tag Team Champions Asuka & Charlotte Flair successfully defended the titles against Sasha Banks & Bianca Belair, and Bayley & Carmella in a Triple Threat Elimination Match.
Figures from: www.f4wonline.com
