But ratings tell only part of the story about the appeal of sports to advertisers. Nielsen’s Year in Sports 2010 reveals that households earning more than $100,000 are more likely to watch major sporting events like the Super Bowl, World Series or World Cup.

The report also provides detail and insight on online buzz, advertising effectiveness, and the power of sports figures to endorse brands.
Download Nielsen’s State of the Media: Year in Sports 2010.

Vonn, who won the gold medal in women’s downhill skiing, has earned more internet buzz than any other U.S. gold medal winner, according to analysis by The Nielsen Company. The skier has received just over 36% of the total buzz among American gold medalists through February 25th. Snowboarder Shaun White has captured 25% of total buzz, while men’s skier Bode Miller has received 18% of the buzz since winning his super-combined gold.

North of the border, freestyle skier Alexandre Bilodeau has secured the most buzz among Canada’s Olympic champs. Since he won the first gold medal for the host nation, Bilodeau has earned 23% of internet buzz surrounding Canadian gold medal winners. Ice dancing champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir were a team not just on the ice, but also on internet forums. They’ve tied as the second most-buzzed about Canadian gold medalists with 16% each.

A Nielsen survey asking Olympics viewers about commercials aired during NBC’s primetime Olympic coverage through February 20 shows that six of the 10 most liked ads contained an Olympics theme.  The ads, aired by Visa, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, and Procter & Gamble, included either a direct mention to the Olympics or imagery alluding to the games.

Visa produced the most liked ad in the first week of Olympic primetime coverage. The emotional spot featuring the story of U.S. speedskater Dan Jansen was liked three times more than the average commercial aired during NBC Olympic telecasts. Visa placed two more ads on the top 10 list, including a spot featuring U.S. skier Julia Mancuso, which earned likeability levels twice as much as the average.

Downhill skiing was the second most popular sport, with an average of 26.7 million viewers watching coverage of the event. Luge coverage earned an average of 26.2 million viewers on NBC through Monday night.

Skiing might be most popular on TV, but in the blogosphere and in other online forums, the landscape is different. A Nielsen analysis of Internet buzz from February 9th to 18th shows that hockey is the most discussed Olympic sport online. Among all online messages related to winter Olympic sports, more than 30% were linked to hockey. Luge generated the second highest amount of buzz over that time, with almost 18%, followed by figure skating with 10% of Olympics sports buzz.

Nielsen also found that Sony was the most watched primetime advertised brand, on average, in the first three nights of Olympic events. The company ran one ad that was viewed by 30.7 million people. A spot run by “We are the World’s” Haiti relief effort earned the second most viewers with 29.7 million viewers. Meanwhile, Nike’s advertising was viewed by 28.9 million viewers. On average, commercial brands were viewed by an average of 24.7 million viewers.

A ranking of average audiences for all ads run by each brand during primetime broadcast Olympic coverage through the first three nights of competition is listed below:

In another quick check of buzz, the host city, Vancouver, British Columbia, showed an increase in mentions equal to and closely mirroring that of the Games themselves. The increase in exposure and buzz is perhaps one reason cities compete so intensely to secure the Olympics.

Stephen Master, Vice President, Nielsen Sports

SUMMARY: 2009 was a record-breaking year for U.S. sports television, featuring the most-viewed Super Bowl ever, the most-viewed Stanley Cup in seven years, and the most-viewed World Series in five years. What trends ignited this growth and what’s in store for 2010?

Unlike many sectors, U.S. sports television had a banner year in 2009. Viewership of major events hit record levels: Super Bowl XLIII was the most-viewed in history; the Stanley Cup was the most-viewed in seven years, followed by the World Series (most in five years).

Driving this growth were technology advances such as satellite television—now in 28.9% of U.S. homes—which spurred an 8% higher rating for network sporting events in satellite TV homes in 2009 and High Definition TV—in 33% of U.S. homes—which prompted network sporting events to receive 21% higher ratings in HD. And, of course, the Internet and sports web sites, which increased 19% from October 2008, provide fans with a virtual sports bar for online conversation. So what are the trends driving the data?

1. The Internet: Sports sites and streaming events tend to complement sports viewing rather than cannibalize it. Blogs and social networks provide fans a virtual “sports bar” for online conversation. The Nielsen TV-Internet convergence panel found that viewers visit social networks more than sports websites while watching games. But thanks in part to fantasy leagues, sports websites are still drawing big numbers: more than 88 million Americans checked out a sports site in October of 2009—that’s up 19% from October 2008.
2. Satellite TV: Satellite television providers are now in 28.9% of U.S. TV homes, and offer robust sports tiers, including league-run networks which keep fans engaged during the off-season. Take note: Homes with satellite TV score higher network ratings (8% more) for sports programming than those without satellite.
3. HDTV: It’s no secret that sports look great in High Definition, and as HD penetration continues to grow (in May 2009 HD sets were in 33% of U.S. homes), sports viewing is poised to grow in tandem. This year network sporting events received 21% higher ratings in HD.

Picking Winners for 2010? Bet on Globalization
2010 will feature two major international sporting events: the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, BC, and the World Cup in South Africa. More than a year after the Beijing Olympics attracted 4.7 billion global viewers (211 million in the U.S.), it will be interesting to see the expanded role social media outlets will play in international media coverage and fan engagement.

Goal-den Opportunities
Globalization also presents sports properties with opportunities to grow their fan base: In 2009, the NFL televised a regular season game in London; the NHL dropped the puck in Scandinavia; and the NBA played preseason games in Europe, Asia, and Mexico. The more these leagues extend into new markets, the greater the global reach for their sponsors and advertising partners.

Meanwhile, the already global game of soccer, er, football, for most of the world, is poised again to drive towards its final frontier: the United States. On top of the stateside MLS, the British Premier League and the Champions League are now available to watch in the U.S. With the American team qualifying for the World Cup, soccer seems poised once again to make a run at mainstream American popularity. Lower ticket prices, a futbol-loving Hispanic population that’s growing in the U.S., and a young generation raised on soccer, are other trends that bode well for the sport.

On Defense: Long-Term Threats
More than half of sports fans who identify themselves as “avid fans” reported cutting back on attending sporting events due to the economy. As consumers scrutinize their discretionary income, it remains to be seen if consumer and fan confidence will come back to the stadiums once economic fears have subsided. Nielsen studies have shown that consumers are staying home more, not surprising considering the investment many sports fans are making in their HDTVs and satellite packages.

In the near future, the major sports leagues are also looking with some concern at the next generation of fans. Will they be filling those seats of all these shiny new arenas? According to Nielsen’s How Teens Use Media, teenagers actually under-index when it comes to visiting sports sites on their mobile phones compared to the rest of the population. Will that translate into a more muted engagement going forward with TV viewing, online participation, and live game attendance? Sports franchises are on the edge of their seats, wondering how the first generation born in the digital age will impact the sports world in the next inning of the digital revolution.

2010 U.S. Outlook

Part 1: Cross Media

• Big Screen, Smart Screen, Small Screen: Top 5 Cross-Media Trends
• You Can Take It With You: Future Trends In Media

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Part 2: Consumer

• Winner Winner Chicken Dinner – Top 5 Consumer Goods Spending Trends
• Innovation Creates Opportunities for CPG Growth
• Aging Puts a Wrinkle in U.S. Marketplace

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Part 3: Advertising

• Talking Back – Top Five Advertising Trends
• Get Ready for the Audience-Centric Web
• What Would John Wanamaker Say Today?

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Part 4: Entertainment

• There’s No Business Like Show Business – Top Five Entertainment Trends
• Game On – The World is Watching More Than Ever
• Video Games in Play

FOX’s “American Idol” was the top TV program of 2008, according to Nielsen.  Tuesday night broadcasts of “American Idol,” through December 7, drew 15.5% of U.S. TV households, on average, while Wednesday night “American Idol” broadcasts drew an average of 15.3% of all TV households.

Viewers with DVR access gave NBC’s “Heroes” the biggest bump any primetime program received in 2008.  The average TV audience for “Heroes” increased by 35% when timeshifted viewing within seven days of a program’s original air date was factored into Nielsen’s ratings.  FOX’s “Fringe” and ABC’s “Lost” also drew large audience boosts — +26% and +25%, respectively — from DVR viewers.

The 2008 Superbowl, which drew 43.1% of all U.S. TV households, was the most popular single telecast of 2008. 

Top 10 TV Programs – Regularly Scheduled

Top 10 TV Programs – Single Telecast

Top 10 “Timeshifted” Primetime TV Programs

View the press release.

Relive the greatest hits of 2008 — stay tuned on Nielsen Wire for more Tops In 2008 coverage.

Look ahead to the new year with Nielsen Wire’s 2009 Industry Outlook series.

But according to Nielsen, many of China’s advertisers took a break from advertising in August, sending overall ad spending in China tumbling to levels last seen in May 2008, when the Sichuan earthquake hit and advertising was suspended for three days.

Advertising spending in China grew, year over year, by just 7% in August, Nielsen reported Monday.  In comparison, China’s ad spending grew by an average of 19% in the seven months leading up to the Olympic Games.

In August, sponsor advertising grew by 40% — or RMB2.8 billion (US$370 million) in China, but that increase was not enough to compensate for the withdrawal of the rest of the market’s advertisers.

“This is quite unprecedented, based on our monitoring of advertising behavior and spending for previous Olympic Games.  Rather than attempt to battle it out with the Sponsors, other players opted simply to ’sit out’ the month of August,” Richard Basil-Jones, Managing Director, Media Asia Pacific, Nielsen, noted.  “With the London Games four years out, time will tell whether this was a situation unique to China, or whether in the future, other non-Sponsors will chose to sit on the side lines, leaving the Games open and clear for Sponsors to enjoy maximum cut through in an unusually uncluttered advertising environment.”

Despite the ongoing global financial turmoil, advertisers returned to China’s ad market after the Olympic Games.  In September, ad spending in China registered healthy, near pre-Games growth of 16%, according to Nielsen.

View the full press release.

Read coverage of Nielsen’s findings in the Financial Times.

Two-thirds (66%) of adults in Columbus reported being “very” interested in at least one of the 29 sports measured by Scarborough, including the major leagues, motor sports, college sports, minor leagues, and the Olympics, among others.

Boston (64%), Buffalo (63%), and Pittsburgh (63%) rounded out the top sports markets.

Nationally, 56% of all adults are avid sports fans, according to Scarborough.

View the full press release.