WWE Raw ratings down against NBA Finals, finishes first on cable

Originally posted on F4WOnline.com | By Dave Meltzer | Last updated 6/14/22

Raw last night averaged 1.70 million viewers overall and drew a 0.43 rating in 18-49, putting it solidly in first place for the night on cable.

The number was down nine percent in viewers, down 17 percent in 18-49, and down 21 percent in 18-34 from last week.

But that was inevitable since last night's show went against game five of the Warriors-Celtics NBA Finals series. Raw doing anything but near a record low number last night would have to be considered a positive with the game doing 13.03 million viewers and a 3.99 in 18-49.

The USA Network beat every network on TV except ABC, which had the game. In fact, it beat everything on TV over the entire three hours in 18-49, except ABC and the 9-10 p.m. hour on Univision with Mi Fortuna Es Amarte.

On cable, Raw was first in every key demo except women 18-49, which Below Deck always wins and did again this week.

Raw was 15th in total viewers last night on cable, trailing only news shows.

As compared to last year, which had very heavy competition, not an NBA Final but two NBA playoff games, one NHL playoff game, the Olympic swimming trials that drew big, and a highly rated baseball game, Raw was down three percent in viewers and five percent in 18-49. If you factor in lost homes by USA Network, you get a four percent increase in viewers and a two percent increase in 18-49.

With the weaker lead-in, Miz & Mrs dropped to 519,000 viewers and a 0.14, for the 24th spot on the cable charts, down 19 percent in viewers and down 33 percent in 18-49. It also had a much lower third hour of Raw as a lead-in, and one would expect a drop from the season premiere. Miz & Mrs was second behind Gutfeld on Fox News in its time slot on cable.

Raw had the usual pattern except for a larger than normal third-hour drop, also likely the effect of the game and perhaps a lackluster hour three.

The audience drops from hour one-to-three were 32 percent in women 18-49, which is huge and the NBA wouldn't have affected women as much as men, but men only dropped seven percent. Teenage girls dropped 12 percent and teenage boys fell 29 percent. People over 50 fell 13 percent.

The three hours were: