NBL welcomes rise in viewing and game attendance

Following significant uplift in growth metrics during its last season, the National Basketball League (NBL) has reported a strong start to its 2024/25 competition.

The Hungry Jack’s NBL25 season has already recorded 11 sell-out crowds in Melbourne, Adelaide, Tasmania and Perth - up from seven sell-outs at the same time last season - with more than 300,000 fans attending games.

It has also experienced an increase of 34% on average audience on ESPN compared to the average audience for the whole of last season. The jump comes after a 26% increase in broadcast audience on ESPN last season.

Welcoming the performance, NBL Chief Executive, David Stevenson stated “it has been a sensational start to the season, and we couldn’t be happier with the growth trajectory and position of the League, especially the performance on our primary broadcast partner ESPN.

“The NBL is still the fastest growing sporting league in Australia and that has been underlined by yet another jump in ratings, as more fans engage with world-class basketball week after week.

“I want to give a massive thanks to all our clubs, fans, commercial partners, and venues for their unwavering commitment and support in helping our League continue its rapid growth journey.

“We remain focused on driving growth as the intensity and competitiveness of the season goes to another level.”

Strong attendances and viewing figures have been complemented by the NBL’s digital footprint also expanding, with a 40% year-on-year growth in social following, a 36% rise in app downloads and a 33% increase in website and app visits, showcasing fans are more engaged than ever with the League.

Broadcast Blackout
The NBL has also advised that it has conducted a thorough investigation into the cause of a broadcast blackout during Thursday night’s Brisbane Bullets v Melbourne United game at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre (BEC)

It has explained that tee main cause of the fault was within the Outside Broadcast Unit which suffered a power outage with a little over three minutes left in the game.

Image: Fans enjoy NBL action at Sydney's Qudos Bank Arena. Credit: Qudos Bank Arena.