In 2015, the National Football League (NFL) put up some of the best ratings they have ever seen and reportedly profited $12 billion and expected revenue to increase this year, but so far that’s not how things are playing out. 

NFL profits depend on advertising and viewership, and this year NFL viewership on average is down 10%. There is no shortage of theories as to why this may be, one of those being the Colin Kaepernick’s protests. Forbes magazine did a study and reported that 32% of participants said that they are less likely to watch NFL games because of the growing amount of protests led by Kaepernick.

The NFL does not think that is the reason; they are blaming the drop in viewership on the presidential race currently happening. Which makes sense, every time you turn on the TV or open up your web browser you get bombarded by stories about the election. To put it simply the elections have dominated the news cycle, especially Donald Trump. The numbers verify the NFL’s claims too. 

The NFL has gone up against presidential debates two times this season. The first was a night football game on Monday, Sept. 26 between the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints, and the second was the Green Bay Packers vs. New York Giants on Sunday, Oct. 9. Both times the NFL took big hits while the debates flourished. 

According to CNN Money, the first presidential debate drew a record high 80 million viewers, while the Saints vs. Falcons game attracted a record low for Monday Night Football, only drawing 8 million viewers.  When the Packers played the Giants Sunday night, they put up a 10.2 viewership rating, the lowest rating in three years and second worst rating ever for Sunday Night Football, according to Sports Media Watch. I agree with the NFL, that the elections are taking a lot of viewers from the NFL. My logic is simple. Last year there was no presidential race and the NFL put up huge ratings/profits; this year there is an election and the ratings/profits are down.

The one big hole in the NFL’s claims of the presidential race being the sole reason for viewership problems is that during the presidential races in 2012 the NFL had no problem drawing viewers, averaging 19 million viewers on major networks, but we can all agree this election is different.

Never have we seen an election with a candidate like Trump who is soaking up all the media attention on a daily basis. Many people, including myself, are considering this election as one of the most important of our country’s history, especially for millennials.

That being said, it’s not surprising that the debates are stealing viewers from the NFL. It is probably not the only reason, like the NFL believes, but there is no denying that the election is playing a big part in the decrease of viewership.