MLB Field of Dreams returns with steep viewership decline in Netflix debut
Sports Media Watch • • sports
Key Points:
- The MLB Field of Dreams game returned after a four-year hiatus but saw a significant drop in viewership, averaging 1.66 million viewers on Netflix compared to 3.10 million on FOX in 2022.
- The 2023 game’s audience was also much lower than the original 2021 Field of Dreams game, which drew nearly six million viewers on FOX and remains the most-watched MLB regular season window since 2005.
- Among Netflix-exclusive MLB events this year, the Field of Dreams game had the lowest viewership, trailing behind the Yankees-Giants Opening Night game (2.97M) and the Home Run Derby (5.3M).
- Despite the decline, the game attracted a younger median audience age of 46, the youngest for an MLB special event, though the overall drop in viewers limits the impact of this demographic shift.
- The Field of Dreams game will return next season on NBC and Peacock, with Netflix’s MLB contract allowing one special event game per year, though it is unclear which event Netflix will stream moving forward.
