For the first time ever, WWE Raw went against an NFL playoff game and the results proved Raw could maintain its audience.
The January 17th edition of the show averaged 1,613,000 viewers and approximately 565,000 (0.43) in the 18-49 demographic, per Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics and Showbuzz Daily.
While last week’s show went against another juggernaut in the College Football Playoff championship game, this week’s NFL playoff game between Arizona and the L.A. Rams was available across multiple networks with ABC, ESPN, and ESPN 2 carrying the game.
The ABC broadcast averaged 12,769,000 viewers (2.73 in 18-49), ESPN averaged 8,832,000 (2.69), and the ManningCast featuring Dwayne Johnson as one of the guests averaged 1,419,000 (0.50).
Raw’s overall audience was essentially flat with a 1 percent drop from last week. The 18-49 audience saw a big victory with an increase of 11 percent compared to last week.
Males 18-49 (13 percent) and Adults 18-34 (29 percent) were also up from last week’s ratings in those respective demos.
Raw began with 1,734,000 viewers and 0.47 in the 18-49 demo in the first hour, which was higher than any hour of Raw in the month of December 2021.
The show fell to 1,650,000 viewers and 0.43 in the demo for hour two, and 1,456,000 and 0.40 in the final hour. Throughout the show, the episode fell 16 percent in viewers and 15 percent among 18-49.
Females 18-49 fell by 20.5 percent throughout the show and adults 50+ were unchanged over the first two hours before a 14 percent decline in the final hour’s rating.
In Canada, Raw averaged 212,400 viewers on Sportsnet 360 and 99,000 in the 25-54 demographic. They grew 8 percent in viewers from last week’s episode but fell 12 percent in the demo.
