No matter how you cut it the Eagles did well in terms of television ratings for the Eagles-All Blacks match. The official numbers are in and 927,000 thousand people tuned in to watch the match live. Given that many in the rugby community were a part of the 60,000 plus in attendance and the match was going up against college football those are great numbers. In comparison, the Las Vegas 7s drew in slightly more than that put didn't have college football to contend with or had as large of a crowd. Both events have been solid. While the numbers from the match may not equal any of the other major sports they do come close or better than what the Major League Soccer final receives every year.
All told, the match has the markings to be a turning point for American rugby. However, and this is a big however, it will only happen if decision makers continue to make smart decisions. The best example of this is the current November tour where none of the three matches in Europe were/will be shown on television in the United States. Instead, fans had to specifically no where to look. For a fan just getting into rugby and wanting to watch more the likelihood of them going to some Romanian website to watch the Eagles play is remote. It was a huge opportunity missed to build on momentum.
Take the jump to read more.
The same goes for 7s coverage. The Las Vegas 7s gathers plenty of attention and is shown on television but the best fans are going to get for the rest of the stops on the Series is the two hour show late at night on Universal Sports that only shows the final four matches. So unless the Eagles make a final they aren't on television. Improvements have been made to allow U.S. fans to watch online on Universal Sports, but again, like the Eagles current tour or Europe you have to know where to look so only the diehards tune in. Whether it's an Eagles specific highlight show every week during when the Eagles play or something else fans that may have been looking for rugby after Chicago are basically lost.
It's not just a matter of getting more rugby on television either, it's about getting it on the right channel. NBC has been a solid partner for both the All Blacks match and the Las Vegas 7s. Yes, they can sometimes focus on hokey things but that's apparently what draws people in. However, other than that the only match to appear on NBC Sports Network was last year's Varsity Cup final. Even the Scotland-Eagles match was shown on Universal Sports. Not many people have Universal Sports. Arguably even Fox Soccer Plus or BeIn Sports would be more of a natural fit for rugby than Universal Sports.
The U.S. also needs to focus on more than television. As we've written about before, the days of getting 20,000 for a Tier I match and then only 5,000 or 7,000 for their next matches is not cutting it. The Eagles need to at least get over the 10,000 mark for all of their matches. It's doable and U.S.A. Rugby has shown they are on the right path by partnering with marketing companies for matches. They need more of that.
Lastly, whether or not the players on the team make their paycheck playing rugby, as Eagles they are professional and should be treated as such. We've talked with the Eagles, we know their stories. Many of those stories were amplified in the lead up to the All Blacks match but we need to have more of that on a regular basis, otherwise, the Eagles risk being put into the category of Olympic athletes that are only remembered once every four years rather than athletes from major sports in the U.S. that are constantly in the news.
The good news is that there is plenty of room to grow and build a large fan base. The All Blacks match was great for building excitement in the rugby community and bringing new fans. However, it can't simply be a celebration of American rugby. The 927,000 number won't mean much unless it's followed up on a consistent basis. Here's hoping that happens.