The NWSL championship was the most-watched match in league history

The shift to primetime produced a 71 percent increase in viewers compared to last year

The NWSL put its championship game on network television in primetime, and the ratings followed.

The league announced that Saturday’s match between the Portland Thorns and Kansas City Current drew in a television audience of 915,000, making it the most-watched match in NWSL history.

In addition, Paramount Plus said the game was its most-streamed NWSL match ever and recorded double-digit growth compared to last year’s title game.

Viewers saw Sophia Smith star as Portland defeated Kansas City 2-0 to take home its third NWSL title.

The shift to primetime was a major factor in a 71 percent viewership increase from last year’s title game. CBS also carried the 2021 NWSL championship but with a noon ET kickoff, the game drew in 525,000 viewers.

For comparison, last year’s MLS Cup between the Portland Timbers and New York City FC drew in 1.1 million viewers on ABC with a 3 p.m. ET kickoff.

MLS just signed a 10-year deal with Apple worth a reported $250 million annually. By comparison, the NWSL’s current media rights deals are worth a reported $1.5 million per year for three seasons with CBS, while Amazon is paying more than $1 million per year to stream games on Twitch.

The NWSL media rights deals are up at the end of 2023, and the league looks set for a major increase in revenue from those broadcast rights.

[lawrence-related id=8989,8987,9004]