Study: President Trump's effect on NFL ratings was "weak" -- quality of football is likely to blame for viewership decline

USA Today

USA Today "dove into the numbers" to see why ratings for the NFL actually declined in recent years, and whether Colin Kaepernick and President Trump were really to blame. "We examined TV viewership for Sunday Night Football in 37 markets in 2016 and 2017," said USA Today. "The data, courtesy of Comscore, shows the percent of TVs in a market that were tuned to the big game. Then, we looked at how people in those places voted in the last Presidential election — plus a bunch of football factors. There was some evidence of a Trump effect. But it was, at best, weak. What really stood out was that people stuck with football if there was a 'football reason' to watch. The data show that quality football and home team loyalty drove the TV audience far more than political tribalism." The study also found that areas of high Trump support received bad football games, including Arizona, Indianapolis and Houston. ALSO: Network executives explain why NFL ratings are up 1% this year.