Friday’s live edition of WWE SmackDown, featuring the return of Seth Rollins with Cesaro and Daniel Bryan defeating SmackDown Tag Team Champions Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode in the non-title Elimination Chamber qualifier main event, drew an average of 1.990 million viewers on FOX, according to Showbuzz Daily.
This final number is up from the overnight viewership that was released on Saturday morning, which was an average of 1.883 million viewers. This number is down from last week’s final SmackDown viewership of 2.257 million viewers for the post-Royal Rumble episode. Not including episodes that aired on FS1, this is the lowest SmackDown on FOX viewership going back to the August 7, 2020 episode, which drew 1.962 million viewers.
Friday’s SmackDown drew a 0.57 rating in the key 18-49 demographic, a 0.67 rating in the 25-54 demo, and a 0.35 rating in the 18-34 demographic. Last week’s SmackDown drew a 0.65 rating in the key 18-49 demographic, a 0.82 rating in the 25-54 demo, and a 0.34 rating in the 18-34 demographic.
SmackDown was down 12% in viewership from last week, and down 12.3% in the 18-49 demographic from last week. This week’s viewership was down 19% from the same week in 2020, and this week’s 18-49 demographic rating was also down 19% from the same week last year.
SmackDown ranked #3 in ratings for the key 18-49 demographic on network TV, behind Shark Tank and 20/20. SmackDown ranked #2 in the 18-34 demo this week, behind Shark Tank, which drew a 0.36. The show ranked #5 in the 25-54 demo. SmackDown came in at #8 for the night in viewership on network TV. Blue Bloods on CBS topped the night on network TV in viewership this week with 6.516 million viewers.
The NBA game on ESPN between the Grizzlies and the Lakers topped the night on the Cable Top 150 with a 0.49 rating in the 18-49 demographic, drawing 1.257 million viewers. Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC topped the night in cable viewership with 4.147 million viewers, ranking #10 on the Cable Top 150 with a 0.35 rating in the key demo.
Below is our 2021 SmackDown Viewership Tracker:
January 1 Episode: 2.013 million viewers with a 0.53 rating in the 18-49 demographic (New Year’s episode)
January 8 Episode: 2.120 million viewers with a 0.56 rating in the 18-49 demographic
January 15 Episode: 2.262 million viewers with a 0.67 rating in the 18-49 demographic
January 22 Episode: 2.383 million viewers with a 0.63 rating in the 18-49 demographic
January 29 Episode: 2.304 million viewers with a 0.62 rating in the 18-49 demographic
February 5 Episode: 2.257 million viewers with a 0.65 rating in the 18-49 demographic (post-Royal Rumble episode)
February 12 Episode: 1.990 million viewers with a 0.57 rating in the 18-49 demographic
February 19 Episode:
2020 Total: 113.372 million viewers
2020 Average: 2.180 million viewers per episode (2 FS1 airings)
2019 Total: 112.530 million viewers
2019 Average: 2.164 million viewers per episode (1 FS1 airing)
2018 Total: 122.304 million viewers
2018 Average: 2.352 million viewers per episode
2017 Total: 132.401 million viewers
2017 Average: 2.546 million viewers per episode
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