Over the past week, professional wrestling has seen a boost in viewership, coinciding with the updated methodology incorporated by Nielsen.
Last week, Variety reported that Nielsen would be incorporating results from a study of consumer behavior in TV and digital media conducted by the Advertising Research Foundation (ARF).
It was expected to go into effect last week with Variety stating that it, “could result in a one-time expansion of the number of households, or “universe,” watching cable and broadcast TV, and a potential diminution of the overall audience watching streaming”.
Despite a small sample, there were significant gains across the board over the past week for WWE, AEW, and TNA programming.
The January 27 episode of NXT averaged 674,000 viewers and 109,000 viewers (0.08) in the 18-49 demographic. It was NXT’s largest overall viewership since October 14, 2025, although the 18-49 audience was largely unchanged.
The January 29 edition of Dynamite averaged 653,000 viewers and 123,000 viewers (0.09) in 18-49, which was the show’s largest viewership since September 17, 2025, and largest 18-49 audience since December 10, 2025.
The third episode of TNA Impact on AMC scored its largest viewership on the new platform with 201,000 viewers and 54,000 (0.04) in the 18-49 demo.
Last Friday’s SmackDown viewership has not been reported, but it averaged a 0.29 in the 18-49 demographic, which is its largest rating in the demo since November 21, 2025.
AEW Collision was the biggest beneficiary with an astounding 492,000 viewers and 95,000 (0.07) in 18-49. It was Collision’s best audience since December 2024 and had the handicap of airing the same day as the Royal Rumble.
Data: Wrestlenomics & Programming Insider
