The first round of the 2024 NBA Draft on Wednesday night averaged 4.41 million viewers on ESPN and ABC and won the night on television, according to data from Nielsen Media Research. This is up 18% year-over-year, which is compared to the one-night NBA Draft that aired last June. The 2024 NBA Draft is being broadcast over two days for the first time in the history of the event, and included top prospects such as Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr and Reed Sheppard. Several trades took place during the NBA Draft as well, which were reported on and broken down on both broadcasts throughout the night. The ABC and ESPN broadcasts peaked with over 5 million viewers at 8:15 p.m. EST.

According to a report from Jon Lewis of Sports Media Watch, first-round viewership of the NBA Draft declined by 11% on the year. Yet the viewership figure was up from 2022 when the event averaged 3.99 million, which included Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren and Jabari Smith Jr. being taken in the top 3.

Kevin Neghandi hosted ABC’s coverage of the NBA Draft with analysts Stephen A. Smith and Bob Myers providing insights and analysis. Malika Andrews hosted the ESPN coverage for the event with analysts Jay Bilas, Andraya Carter and Richard Jefferson. The broadcasts included contributions from Adrian Wojnarowski, Monica McNutt, Bobby Marks and Jonathan Givony as well.

Day 2 of the 2024 NBA Draft started on Thursday afternoon at 4 p.m. EST from the ESPN Seaport District Studios in New York, N.Y. Andrews, Smith, Myers and Wojnarowski, four of the five members of NBA Countdown, were all on hand for the event providing studio coverage and analysis. The NBA Draft is the third most-watched sports draft audience of the year thus far, behind the first two nights of the NFL Draft that drew 11.63 million and 5.05 million viewers, respectively. Additionally, the WNBA Draft on ESPN averaged 2.45 million viewers, the most-watched edition of the event in the history of the league.

The National Football League has been ordered to pay approximately $4.7 billion in damages after it lost a jury trial regarding the anticompetitive aspects of the NFL Sunday Ticket broadcast package. Following deliberation, a jury in Los Angeles federal court sided with the plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit on Thursday afternoon. The jury vote claims that the league colluded with DirecTV, CBS and FOX to raise the price of subscriptions to watch out-of-market games.

The league has now been ordered by the jury to pay $96.9 million in damages to the commercial class and $4.61 billion in damages to the residential class. These damages are also tripled under federal antitrust law, thus equating to more than $14 billion. U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez could still rule in a manner that would eliminate the jury verdict. In a statement released shortly after the ruling, the league stated that it will appeal the decision.

“We are disappointed with the jury’s verdict today in the NFL Sunday Ticket class action lawsuit,” a spokesperson for the National Football League said in a statement. “We continue to believe that our media distribution strategy, which features all NFL games broadcast on free over-the-air television in the markets of the participating teams and national distribution of our most popular games, supplemented by many additional choices including RedZone, Sunday Ticket and NFL+, is by far the most fan friendly distribution model in all of sports and entertainment.”

NFL Sunday Ticket is currently available through YouTube and YouTube TV as part of a media rights deal valued at a reported $2 billion annually over seven years. The broadcast package had previously been distributed by DirecTV, which is said to have paid $1.5 billion per year. DirecTV was not involved in the trial after the judge agreed to allow it to send customer claims against the company into closed-door arbitration.

Within the trial, it was revealed that the NFL declined a proposal from ESPN to lower the price of the package to $70 per year and include single-team packages. NFL Sunday Ticket currently costs $349 per year on YouTube TV, with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell calling it a “premium product” during the trial.

“We will certainly contest this decision as we believe that the class action claims in this case are baseless and without merit,” a spokesperson for the National Football League said in a statement. “We thank the jury for their time and service and for the guidance and oversight from Judge Gutierrez throughout the trial.”

NFL games were responsible for 93 of the 100 most-watched television broadcasts in the United States last year, according to data from Nielsen Media Research. The class action lawsuit was filed on behalf of over 2.4 million residential subscribers and over 48,000 commercial establishments that purchased NFL Sunday Ticket.

Marquee Sports Network has announced that the Chicago Cubs television broadcast on Friday, July 7 will feature an all-female crew, consisting of play-by-play announcer Beth Mowins, game analyst Elise Menaker and field reporter Taylor McGregor. This will mark the first time a broadcast of this kind has taken place in Cubs history and will also include celebrations of women in baseball during the pregame and postgame shows. Social and digital media platforms will highlight the broadcast as well, along with play-by-play calls submitted by young Cubs fans. Moreover, fans will be able to interact with the broadcasters through social media ahead of the afternoon game against the Los Angeles Angels from Wrigley Field.

“Beth, Elise and Taylor excel at what they do for Marquee Sports Network,” Diane Penny, general manager of Marquee Sports Network, said in a statement. “While combining their excellence from the field to the broadcast booth marks another ‘first’ in Cubs history, it signifies yet another opportunity for our team to serve fans in a meaningful and memorable way. We look forward to an outstanding broadcast, and we know they’ll continue to be inspirations for the next generation of broadcasters.”

Mowins has called select Chicago Cubs games since 2021, becoming the first woman to work as a play-by-play announcer in the history of the organization. Outside of her work with Marquee Sports Network, she primarily broadcasts men’s and women’s college sports games for ESPN. In 2017, she became the first woman to call an NFL game. Earlier this year, Mowins was the play-by-play announcer for ESPN’s all-women NBA broadcast alongside Monica McNutt and Katie George.

“Elise and Taylor are outstanding to work with, and I’m thrilled that we will have this opportunity to work together for this historic Cubs broadcast,” Mowins said in a statement. “It’s always an honor working in the Wrigley Field broadcast booth and we are all looking forward to this special broadcast.”

Menaker has been a member of Marquee Sports Network since 2020, working as a field reporter and studio host. During the 2022 season, she became the first woman to work as a television analyst for a Cubs game. Menaker became the first woman to broadcast a Cubs game as a radio analyst last season as well. While attending Cornell University, she was a four-year starter on the school’s softball team and inducted into its athletics Hall of Fame.

“I’m really looking forward to working with Beth and Taylor on this special day at Wrigley Field,” Menaker said in a statement. “It’ll be exciting to share this broadcast with Cubs fans and particularly with young girls who may dream of one day getting involved in this great game. My mom always told me that I could accomplish my dreams, no matter how big, and I hope to inspire young girls and boys to do the same. Dream big.”

McGregor joined Marquee Sports Network at its launch in 2020 and is the primary field reporter for Chicago Cubs television broadcasts. Additionally, she works with MLB Network as a host and at ESPN on its college football game coverage in the fall. Before joining the regional sports network, she worked in Denver, Colo. with AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain for two seasons on Colorado Rockies games.

“It’s always a joy having the opportunity to work with Beth and Elise, and to be a part of this first all-female broadcast is something that we’re looking forward to,” McGregor said in a statement. “I always appreciate having the chance to show young fans, especially girls, the many opportunities in the game of baseball and this broadcast will be a great demonstration of that.”

The Cubs Live! pregame show for the Cubs-Angels game on Friday, July 7 will begin at 12 p.m. CST. First pitch of the game is scheduled for 1:20 p.m. CST from Wrigley Field and will include Mowins, Menaker and McGregor making history on the first-of-its-kind broadcast for a Chicago Cubs game.