Despite the best efforts of founders Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart and the high level of WNBA talent and excitement on display, the ratings for Unrivaled League have been down significantly in its second season.
The league’s opening weekend reported a drop in viewership compared to the inaugural season with empty seats and a lackluster fan presence.
Angel Reese Returns To Unrivaled League To Help Boost Ratings
The recent departure of Rickea Jackson, who is currently recovering from a traumatizing domestic violence situation involving her ex-boyfriend and NFL player James Pearce Jr, has also left Unrivaled with one less household name to draw fans.
So what do you do when you need a ratings boost? Call WNBA star Angel Reese to suit up. She’s guaranteed to get the social media mill rocking and elevate the presence of Unrivaled for the remainder of the season.
“Ratings is down call the ratings raiser!! We know what it is,” one fan said on Facebook.
“Yes ma’am!! This just got me hype,” another added.
“She’s baaaaack,” said a third fan who followed the comment with a Black heart.
“I knew she was coming back,” said another excited fan.
Viewership Down For Unrivaled League In Second Season
According to the stats, the average viewership across TNT and truTV for the first two games was 175,000 viewers, down from the 312,000 viewers seen in the first season. The numbers continued to decline, with viewership dropping to 139,000 on Day 5 and 100,000 on Saturday and 184,000 on Monday in the second week.
However, despite the ratings drop, the league has reportedly seen an increase in social media engagement, with views and impressions up 27% from last year’s opening weekend.
Angel Reese’s Return Brings The Haters Back Out
Of course, for all of the support Reese gets she has her permanent critics, who couldn’t wait to start talking about “mebounds” and other things used to diminish Reese’s skill and impact.
“Laying bricks,” said one hater on Facebook.
“Throwing up bricks and her own mebounds,” quipped another senior citizen.
“Nobody Gives AF. Aliyah Boston about that business,” said one fan of the Indiana Fever.
Like her or hate her, Reese’s presence brings engagement and that’s just what Unrivaled needs. Fans are excited.
Unrivaled League Says Sustainability Not Viewership Is The Goal
Also, Unrivaled League founders have said in the past that the league’s long-term goals are focused on the long-term health, sustainability and viability of the league and its players. Immediate viewership numbers aren’t their top priority. But nobody wants to play in a league that nobody is watching.
Thus, the return of the WNBA’s double-double machine, who is also known for her branding, fashion, big corporate collaborations, NBA boyfriends and being the first pro athlete in history to walk the Victoria Secret runway.
What Does this Mean For Rose BC?
Team Rose won the inaugural Unrivaled championship and now gets Reese back. She was a huge part of that winning situation and will undoubtedly pump some excitement into the league as she also brings her 3M social media followers along on the journey. The Rose is 5-6 and in fifth place in the 8-team league. Reese will return to Unrivaled on February 20.
