Friday Night SmackDown fell to its lowest viewership of the year airing against the NBA & NHL playoffs.
The April 21st edition of the program averaged 2,175,000 viewers and approximately 704,000 (0.54) in the 18-49 demographic. (Showbuzz Daily and Wrestlenomics).
The four percent decline in viewership sent SmackDown to its lowest audience since a taped edition on November 4, 2022. The show dropped seven percent in the 18-49 demo and was its lowest figure since January 6.
SmackDown didn’t experience any change among its 18-34 audience from the week prior while adults 35-49 fell by 10.5 percent.
SmackDown still beat everything on television except for the NBA programming on ABC and ESPN. The game on ABC averaged 2.5 million viewers and 0.68 in the demo while ESPN aired back-to-back games beginning at 7:10 p.m. ET with the Celtics vs. Hawks (2.3 million viewers and 0.71) followed by the Nuggets vs. Timberwolves (2.25 million and 0.80) airing against the final 22 minutes of SmackDown.
The NHL playoffs featured the Bruins vs. Panthers (713,000 and 0.24) on TNT, and back-to-back games on TBS with the Hurricanes vs. Islanders (703,000 and 0.24) followed by the Stars vs. Wild (559,000 and 0.20).
In Canada, the show averaged approximately 161,300 viewers and 48,000 in the 25-54 demographic on Sportsnet 360. Canadian figures have been significantly impacted since the start of the NHL playoffs and the Toronto Blue Jays kicking off its season. SmackDown was up in viewership in Canada from the week prior, but the demo audience dropped from 66,000 and was SmackDown’s lowest in the 25-54 demo since December.
The show included a No Disqualification match between Solo Sikoa and Matt Riddle and two championship matches.
