ESPN Delivers Strongest First Half

ESPN generated its most-watched first half of the year in more than a decade as fans consumed a combined 288B minutes of sports content across ESPN and ESPN on ABC during Nielsen’s first half 2026 calendar period.

The total represents a 13% increase versus the same period last year and marks the strongest first-half performance since 2012. The momentum extended across multiple categories, including double-digit audience growth, in addition to the increased consumption figures.ESPN on ABC: 

• Best first half since 2006, the last year ABC aired the Super Bowl, with 78B minutes, up 16% YOY.
• ESPN Average Minute Audience: 800K, up 12% YOY and ESPN’s best first half since 2016.
• ESPN in primetime: 2.1M average viewers, the best since 2012, and up from 1.9M average for the first half of 2025.
• Sports Minutes Watched: ESPN ranked first of any individual network with 19% of sports minutes watched in the first half of 2026, just ahead of NBC’s 18%. ESPN’s networks accounted for an industry-leading 32% of all sports viewing during the period.

During the first half of the year, ESPN networks also had their best June since 2016 for ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN on ABC and for ESPN and ESPN on ABC, as well as the best June since 2010 for ESPN on ABC.

Please Note: All metrics are based on Nielsen Big Data + Panel. Nielsen’s Q1 + Q2 date range is December 29, 2025, to June 28, 2026. All comparisons are inclusive of Nielsen’s defined Q1 and Q2 in past years.