First-Ever Breeders’ Cup on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2; 62% More Viewers than 2007

[jrstark]

From ESPN

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 31, 2008

First-Ever Breeders’ Cup on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 Delivers 62% More Viewers than 2007
Household Ratings Up 11% From 2007 Audience
Record Nine Plus Hours of  Coverage Over Two Days

The 2008 Breeders’ Cup World Championships, televised on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 on October 24-25 deliver 19,776,000 million viewers, up 62% from last year (12,237,000). In addition, the household rating  (.7) for the nine-plus hours of programming on Friday and Saturday was 11% higher than last year (.6) when The Breeders’ Cup was televised on ESPN and ESPN2. The 25th running of The Breeders’ Cup featured a record 14 races over two days. The ABC and ESPN combination marks the first-ever network/cable telecast of the Championships.

“With the expanded two-day format and the addition of ABC, we achieved one of this year's main objectives -- to showcase the World Championships to a significantly larger audience," said Greg Avioli, Breeders' Cup President and CEO. "We thank our partners at ESPN for a tremendous production and outstanding promotion leading up to the event."

"These 'poll' numbers mean The Breeders’ Cup on ESPN and ABC is the big winner in 2008, "said Len DeLuca, Senior Vice president of programming and acquisitions, ESPN. “We'll continue to work with Greg Avioli's team to grow horse racing's biggest two days."

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