Sky Sports, The Nation’s Favourite
Sky Sports has overtaken the BBC to claim pole position as the nation’s favourite sports channel, according to CIA MediaLab’s latest Sensor survey.
In a representative sample of adults 15 years and over, 32% of adults, with or without cable and satellite TV, said that Sky Sports provided the best sports coverage in the UK. BBC1 lost its top spot, down from 40% last year to 30%. ITV moved up from 5th to 3rd, rising 7% to 11%.
Sky Sports is particularly popular with younger viewers. 48% of 15-24 year olds surveyed felt that Sky provided the best sports coverage, compared to 28% for BBC1. Even in homes without satellite or cable, Sky was voted favourite by 20% of viewers.
Anthony Jones, head of CIA Medialab, said: “The BBC has been badly hit by the loss of Formula One racing to ITV. The drop in appreciation for its sports output will only be compounded next year when we see the affect of the loss to ITV of live coverage of the FA Cup Final.” However, the BBC can take some comfort from the research, 42% of adults questioned said that the quality of the broadcast would deteriorate when the Cup Final moves to ITV.
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