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[09/10/24 - 03:28 PM]
ESPN's "Monday Night Football" Delivers 20.5 Million Viewers, Second Most-Watched Week 1 Game in ESPN Era
Accounting for all weeks, the Jets-49ers is the sixth-most-watched "Monday Night Football" game in the ESPN era, with four of the preceding five occurring during the 2023 season.
[via press release from ESPN]

ESPN's "Monday Night Football" Delivers 20.5 Million Viewers, Second Most-Watched Week 1 Game in ESPN Era

· Three Seasons of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, along with Lisa Salters, Have Delivered Three Most-Watched Week 1 Games in ESPN's Monday Night Football History

· Monday Night Countdown Draws 1.3 Million Viewers

ESPN's Monday Night Football 2024 season opener averaged 20.5 million viewers (ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, ESPN+, ESPN Deportes, and NFL+) for the 49ers' convincing 32-19 win over the Jets (September 9, 8:15 p.m. ET). The audience is Monday Night Football's second-most-watched Week 1 matchup in ESPN's 19 seasons airing the legendary television franchise ((2006 - present, 34 games).

Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Lisa Salters Call ESPN's Most-Watched Week 1 Monday Night Football Games

The three seasons of Monday Night Football with Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Lisa Salters on the mic have scored as the three most-watched Week 1 games in the ESPN era. The trio was joined this season by Laura Rutledge on site in San Francisco.

ESPN's Most-Watched Week 1 MNF Games

Rank Season Matchup Viewership

1 2023 Buffalo Bills at New York Jets 22.7 million

2 2024 New York Jets at San Fransico 49ers 20.5 million

3 2022 Denver Broncos at Seattle Seahawks 19.8 million

Overall, there have been 34 Week 1 games on ESPN platforms due to doubleheaders in most seasons.

Monday Night Football Continues Momentum of Top Games

The strong start to the 2024 season campaign continues the momentum for Monday Night Football. Accounting for all weeks, the Jets-49ers is the sixth-most-watched Monday Night Football game in the ESPN era, with four of the preceding five occurring during the 2023 season.

Monday Night Countdown Draws 1.3 Million Viewers

Leading into the game, Monday Night Countdown (6-8 p.m.) averaged 1.3 million viewers, as Ryan Clark, Jason Kelce, and Marcus Spears joined Scott Van Pelt for the crew's first on-site show together. Adam Schefter also appeared on the programming from Levi's Stadium.

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· MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (ABC)




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[09/25/26 - 10:35 AM]
ESPN Delivered Its Most-Watched WNBA Regular Season Ever!
Across 29 games, the WNBA on ESPN networks averaged 1.37M viewers, up 17% year-over-year and ranking as ESPN networks' most-viewed WNBA regular season on record.

[09/24/26 - 12:25 PM]
ABC News Wins Across the Board in Late Night and Friday Night
"20/20" ranks as Friday's No. 1 newsmagazine in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49, drawing its largest audience in two months and growing year to year in all key measures.
[09/23/26 - 02:56 PM]
Giants-Rams Becomes ESPN's Most-Watched Week 2 "Monday Night Football" Game Ever with 19.4 Million Viewers
Through the first two weeks, "Monday Night Football" is averaging 21.4 million viewers, up 29% compared to the first two weeks of the 2025 season.
[09/23/26 - 11:01 AM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of September 14
"Reacher," "Neagley," "Sterling Point," "El Juicio," and "The Grand Tour" led all original series worldwide.
[09/22/26 - 03:08 PM]
Record-Breaking Week 3: ESPN/ABC Claim Every Saturday Window; "College GameDay" Continues Historic Start to the Season
ESPN networks delivered the top five most-watched games of Week 3 and accounted for two-thirds of all college football viewing.
[09/22/26 - 02:34 PM]
FOX's "America's Game of the Week" Scores Regular Season High 27,212,000 Viewers in Week 2
Said coverage was up +8% vs. last year's full season average of 25,269,000 viewers.
[09/22/26 - 02:17 PM]
Colts-Chiefs Overtime Thriller Is Most Watched Week 2 NBC "Sunday Night Football" Game Since 2015, Averaging 24.3 Million Viewers on NBC & Peacock
The audience for Colts-Chiefs peaked at 27.4 million viewers on NBC and Peacock in the second quarter (9:15-9:30 p.m. ET).
[09/22/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of September 14 - "Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Again?" Holds No. 1 for a Second Week
"Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story" debuted at the top of the English TV list with 12.1 million views.
[09/22/26 - 12:00 PM]
"Dateline" Is the #1 Friday Newsmagazine in Both Key Demos for Second Consecutive Broadcast Season
The broadcast remains the #1 most-watched news magazine franchise and #1 most-watched true-crime franchise in total linear minutes watched for the season, with 151.2 million total viewers, up +4% vs. last season.

[09/21/26 - 07:02 AM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Season 35 "Two-Night Premiere: Night 2" Swings to 6.44 Million Total Viewers as the Ladies Take Their Turn in the Ballroom
"Dancing with the Stars" ranked as TV's No. 1 show in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 on both Tuesday and Wednesday across all entertainment programming.
[09/18/26 - 03:15 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Wins Late Night Across the Board
For the sixth week running, "Nightline" increased year to year in Total Viewers and Adults 25-54.
[09/18/26 - 12:58 PM]
Marking a Somber Anniversary of the September 11 Attacks, ABC News' 9/11 Special, Anchored by David Muir, Robin Roberts and Diane Sawyer, Draws Over 4 Million Total Viewers
The special was also the No. 1 non-sports program of the night in Adults 25-54 (802,000) and Adults 18-49 (559,000).

[09/16/26 - 02:41 PM]
"Monday Night Football" Opens Super Bowl LXI Season with Record-Setting Audience; Broncos-Chiefs Becomes Most-Watched Week 1 Game of ESPN's "MNF" Era
The season opener between the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs delivered an audience of 23.2 million viewers across ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and NFL+.
[09/16/26 - 02:30 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Leaps Back Into the Ballroom as Tuesday's No. 1 Show, Delivering Nearly 7 Million Total Viewers - Scores Show's Biggest Season Premiere in 6 Years
Among Adults 18-49, the "Dancing with the Stars" season opener jumped +40% over last year's premiere, with the show's best premiere performance in the key Adult demographic in nine years.
[09/16/26 - 12:20 PM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of September 7
"Reacher," "The Grand Tour," "Sterling Point," "Off Campus," and "LOL Next" led all original series worldwide.