Coronavirus squashes AEW and NXT in the ratings

The coronavirus pandemic is now affecting pro wrestling ratings and viewership. The numbers for both Dynamite and NXT took a huge nosedive this week (Mar. 11).

Per Showbuzz Daily, AEW netted 766,000 viewers for a .26 rating point in the 18-49 demographic. NXT checked in with 697,000 viewers for a .21 rating point in the same 18-49 demo.

For AEW, this is a decrease of about 140,000 viewers from the prior week, with a big decrease from last week’s 0.35 demo rating. For NXT, viewership decreased by about 21,000 viewers from the prior week, and the demo rating was down from last week’s 0.23.

AEW dropped from 5th to 25th place in the demo rating for the night, while NXT moved down from 20th place to 42nd place.

These numbers are awful relative to past results, particularly for Dynamite, and it seems pretty simple to explain what happened here. The coronavirus pandemic is all over the news, everything is shutting down, and lots of people are preoccupied with more important things in the world that do not involve pro wrestling.

Here’s a breakdown of AEW viewership and rating in the 18-49 demo:

• Oct. 2: 1.4 million / .68
• Oct. 9: 1.02 million / .46 on TNT, plus 122K from Tru TV simulcast for total viewership of approximately 1.14 million
• Oct. 16: 1.01 million / .44
• Oct 24: 963,000 / .45
• Oct 30: 759,000 / .34
• Nov. 6: 822,000 / .35
• Nov. 13: 957,000 / .43
• Nov. 20: 893,000 / .39
• Nov. 27: 663,000 / .26
• Dec. 4: 851,000 / .32
• Dec. 11: 778,000 / .28
• Dec. 18: 683,000 / .25
• Dec. 25: N/A
• Jan. 1: 967,000 / .36
• Jan. 8: 947,000 / .36
• Jan. 15: 940,000 / .38
• Jan. 22: 871,000 / .35
• Jan. 29: 828,000 / .34
• Feb. 5: 928,000 / .36
• Feb. 12: 817,000 / .30
• Feb. 19: 893,000 / .31
• Feb. 26: 865,000 / .30
• Mar. 4: 906,000 / .35
• Mar. 11: 766,000 / .26

Here’s a breakdown of NXT’s audience and ratings share of the same demographic:

• Sept. 18 (one hour on USA): 1.18 million / .56
• Sept. 25 (one hour on USA): 1.01 million / .40
• Oct. 2: 891,000 / .32
• Oct. 9: 790,000 / .22
• Oct. 16: 712,000 / .20
• Oct. 24: 698,000 / .21
• Oct 30: 580,000 / .18
• Nov. 6: 813,000 / .30
• Nov. 13: 750,000 / .25
• Nov. 20: 916,000 / .30
• Nov. 27: 810,000 / .24
• Dec. 4: 845,000 / .29
• Dec. 11: 778,000 / .24
• Dec. 18: 795,000 / .27
• Dec. 25: 831,000 / .22
• Jan. 1: 548,000 / .15
• Jan. 8: 721,000 / .19
• Jan. 15: 700,000 / .21
• Jan. 22: 769,000 / .24
• Jan. 29: 712,000 / .22
• Feb. 5: 770,000 / .22
• Feb. 12: 757,000 / .24
• Feb. 19: 794,000 / .25
• Feb. 26: 717,000 / .23
• Mar. 4: 718,000 / .23
• Mar. 11: 697,000 / .21

Total viewership for Wednesday night checked in at 1,463,000 pro wrestling fans.

What do you make of these results, Cagesiders?

Check out both our Dynamite live blog, review & video highlights, and our NXT live blog, review & video highlights, in case you missed any of the Wednesday Night War’s latest chapter.