Edison Research: Listening Makes for Better Watching

RADIO ONLINE | Wednesday, February 15, 2023

Edison Research

According to Edison Research, a younger medium has allowed fans to stay closer to their favorite sports and teams than ever before: podcasts. The inexpensive entry point for podcasting means anyone can create their own. Sports podcasts, and the ability to listen whenever and wherever, bring millions of fans endless analysis and perspectives. But, just like in sports, there can only be one winner that draws in the largest audience.

In an Edison Research first, they tap into Edison Podcast Metrics to identify the most popular sports shows. Edison Podcast Metrics covers the entire podcasting space, so based on its surveys of over 10,500 U.S. weekly podcast consumers conducted from July to December of 2022, they can measure the top podcasts in the beloved sports genre.

Standing in third place is "The Pat McAfee Show 2.0," while second place goes to Barstool Sport's "Pardon My Take." At the top of the podium is The Ringer's "Bill Simmons Podcast" -- having earned the highest number of U.S. podcast listeners in the third and fourth quarters of 2022.

All three shows cover the hottest stories in sports, occasionally interviewing players and coaches. They publish episodes frequently so listeners can tune in routinely. And they also encompass NFL and NBA news, two sports that align with podcast listeners' top tastes.

In Q4 2022, according to Edison Podcast Metrics, 29% of the weekly podcast audience age 13 and older say their favorite sport to watch live on television or streaming video is football, followed by a significantly smaller 14% who say basketball. Soccer is the third most popular sport - 9% of podcast listeners say it's their favorite to watch, which is slightly higher than the 8% of listeners who say baseball.

The order of the #1 and #2 sports to watch among podcast consumers doesn't come as a surprise, considering those track well with the sports ranking of broadcast viewership in the U.S. Where podcast listeners differ, however, is the #3 ranked sport on this list. Soccer beats out baseball by one point. Call the one-point difference a tie, but this high ranking for soccer is not typically seen in viewership ratings.

One might attribute this finding to having been measured during one of the greatest World Cup tournaments ever, with its storybook ending for the sport's all-time great, Lionel Messi. But a closer look at the data reveals that younger podcast listeners are propelling soccer higher than we see in national consumption measurements.

As EPM subscribers will notice, soccer is the second most popular sport among 13- to 17-year-old podcast listeners, even edging out basketball. The young group's affinity for the sport foreshadows the type of sports news, analysis, and stories that will thrive as these listeners mature.