Reason Behind 6/19 AEW Dynamite’s Record Low Viewership Revealed

AEW has seen a lot of growth over the past five years but one of the company’s biggest issues is undoubtedly the gradual decline in ratings for their shows, notably Dynamite. The June 19th edition of Dynamite ended up setting a record low for the show and the likely reasons for that have been revealed.

As previously reported, the June 19th edition of AEW Dynamite drew 502,000 viewers and achieved a rating of 0.16 in the coveted 18-49 demographic and this was an all-time low record for Dynamite.

Fightful Select reached out to various sources within AEW and Warner Bros. Discovery to get their reactions. AEW sources noted that the typical lead-in for Dynamite, “The Big Bang Theory,” usually attracts a demo number of 200-250k for its final quarter-hour. However, this week’s lead-in was “Black Panther,” which drew under 85k in the demo for the final quarter-hour, leading to a considerable drop-off. They believe the missing viewers were the usual lead-in watchers who didn’t tune in this week.

Despite the lead-in drop, AEW sources mentioned that the “tune-in” numbers were strong, suggesting that the initial audience remained engaged once the show began. AEW talent expressed surprise at the low viewership numbers.

A WBD representative attributed the decline to several factors, including the Juneteenth holiday, competition from Olympic trials and college baseball World Series, and unusually good weather, especially in the Northeast, which led to more people being out and about. The representative downplayed the significance of the low viewership, indicating that it was likely an anomaly and expected numbers to rebound the following week.

“Just a very odd week in general, and a confluence of stuff Juneteenth holiday in the middle of the week (when does a mid-week holiday ever happen in late spring/summer months?!). Competition with Olympic trials and college baseball all World Series in prime time. Amazing weather in much of the country (especially up here in the northeast), so lots more people out and about. Wouldn’t really put much into one week’s number, although I know the wrestling community likes to go nuclear with these kinds of one-offs,” indicating they expect the number to increase next week.

We’ll have to wait and see whether AEW Dynamite manages to bounce back from this alarmingly low viewership next week. The current numbers paint a concerning picture for Tony Khan’s company, raising questions about the show’s ability to retain its audience and maintain its momentum. With various factors potentially influencing this dip, all eyes will be on AEW to see how they respond and if they can recover from this setback.

Do you feel the reasons are proper justifications for AEW Dynamite’s low ratings? Let us know in the comments section below!