Soccer Puts Univision Over the Top to Win Week in Demo

Univision scored a rare primetime victory over its English-language competitors last week, as a key soccer match combined with the net’s original telenovelas for a demo victory.

The Spanish-language network edged out NBC for the lead among adults under 50, with the Peacock getting its own sports boost — from the concluding game of hockey’s Stanley Cup Finals. The week’s top entertainment program was CBS drama “Under the Dome,” which opened in impressive fashion.

Overall for the week of June 24-30, Univision led in adults 18-49 with a 1.4 rating/5 share, followed by NBC (1.3/4), CBS and Fox (both 1.2/4), ABC (1.0/3) and top cabler TBS (0.9/3). CBS and NBC tied for the lead in adults 25-54 (1.7/5) while the Eye finished on top in total viewers (5.7 million).

Univision’s coverage of the FIFA Confederations Cup peaked with Sunday’s early evening Brazil-Spain final, which averaged 4 million viewers, including 2.4 million adults 18-49. It was especially dominant in cities with large Spanish-speaking populations, winning its time period across the board on the net’s stations in New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Dallas.

Univision also continues to fare well relative to its broadcast competition with its original weeknight telenovelas. It ranked as the No. 1 network in adults 18-49 on Thursday and Friday, and it was runner up on Tuesday and Wednesday.

NBC was paced by the sixth and final game of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins xxxxxxxxxxxx, which xxxxxxxxxxxxx. It tied with CBS’ “Under the Dome” premiere (3.3/x in 18-49, 13.53m) as the week’s No. 2 program in 18-49.

“Dome,” which was the week’s most-watched program overall, surged to a 4.3 demo rating and nearly 17 million viewers when three days of DVR playback was counted by Nielsen. The show held up pretty well in its second outing on Monday of the current week, earning a 2.8 in 18-49.

Cable was led by BET’s annual “BET Awards” (3.4/10 in 18-49, 7.77m), which hit four-year highs and led all of television for the week in 18-49.

ABC Family’s “The Fosters” (0.6/2 in 18-49, 1.89m) delivered its best numbers yet last week, building on its “Switched at Birth” lead-in in key under-34 demos.

TNT’s “Rizzoli & Isles” had a strong season premiere (1.4/4 in 18-49, 6.64m), up from last year and ranking as the week’s No. 1 cable series in adults 25-54 (1.9/5) and total viewers. On Wednesday, the net’s “Franklin & Bash” (0.6/1 in 18-49, 2.20m) picked up a little from its sluggish season opener of the previous week

Lifetime’s original movie “Anna Nicole” on Saturday drew 3.3 million viewers and bagged the best young-adult rating for a pic on the net (1.1) since “Steel Magnolias” last October. The next night, original drama “Devious Maids” (0.6/1 in 18-49, 2.09m) matched its week-earlier premiere score in 18-49 while edging up in total viewers.

At OWN, “The Haves and the Have Nots” (0.6/1 in 18-49, 1.82m) posted its best regular-slot results to date on Tuesday, the same day the net doubled the show’s first-season order from 16 to 32 episodes. The Tyler Perry soap bowed May 28 with the net’s largest-ever series premiere audience (1.77 million).

Showtime’s “Ray Donovan” premiered Sunday to 1.35 million for its initial telecast — the largest audience yet for a series debut on the premium network. It followed the return of “Dexter” (2.48 million) as it began its final season.

WEEK’S TOP PROGRAMS

Adults 18-49
1. BET Awards (BET), 3.4/10
2. Stanley Cup Finals: Game 6-Monday (NBC), 3.3/10
3. Under the Dome (CBS), 3.3/9
4. America’s Got Talent (NBC), 2.6/8
5. MasterChef-9 p.m. (Fox), 2.5/8
6. Big Brother-Wednesday (CBS), 2.2/8
6. MasterChef-8 p.m. (Fox), 2.2/8
6. True Blood (HBO), 2.2/6
9. The Big Bang Theory-r (CBS), 2.1/8
9. Hell’s Kitchen (Fox), 2.1/7
————
11. The Bachelorette (ABC), 2.0/6
11. The Big Bang Theory, Monday 9:30-r (CBS), 2.0/5
13. Big Brother-Sunday (CBS), 1.9/6
13. The Big Bang Theory-Monday 9 p.m. (CBS), 1.9/5
15. Love & Hip-Hop Atlanta (VH1), 1.7/6
15. So You Think You Can Dance (Fox), 1.7/5
17. The Big Bang Theory, Tuesday 10:30-r (TBS), 1.5/5
17. Family Guy (Fox), 1.5/4
17. The Big Bang Theory, Tuesday 9:30-r (TBS), 1.5/4
20. The Big Bang Theory, Wednesday 10:30-r (TBS), 1.4/5
20. Catfish: The TV Show (MTV), 1.4/4
20. Rizzoli & Isles (TNT), 1.4/4
20. Pawn Stars (History), 1.4/4
20. The Big Bang Theory, Tuesday 10-r (TBS), 1.4/4
20. WWE Raw-9 p.m. (USA), 1.4/4

Total Viewers (in millions)
1. Under the Dome (CBS), 13.53
2. America’s Got Talent (NBC), 10.23
3. NCIS-r (CBS), 8.37
4. Stanley Cup Finals: Game 6-Monday (NBC), 8.16
5. The Big Bang Theory-r (CBS), 8.15
6. BET Awards (BET), 7.77
7. The Big Bang Theory-Monday 9:30 (CBS), 7.35
8. 60 Minutes (CBS), 7.17
9. The Big Bang Theory, Monday 9-r (CBS), 6.65
10. Rizzoli & Isles (TNT), 6.64
————
11. The Bachelorette (ABC), 6.56
12. Big Brother-Wednesday (CBS), 6.51
13. Person of Interest-r (CBS), 6.49
14. MasterChef-9 (Fox), 6.21
15. Two and a Half Men-r (CBS), 6.17
16. Dateline-Friday (NBC), 6.10
17. Ann Curry Reports (NBC), 6.02
18. NCIS: Los Angeles-r (CBS), 5.96
19. Big Brother-Sunday (CBS), 5.81
20. Criminal Minds-r (CBS), 5.68

WEEK’S TOP NETWORKS
(in millions)

Total Viewers
CBS 5.71
NBC 4.85
ABC 3.74
UNI 3.57
Fox 3.28
USA 2.68
TNT 2.37
DIS 2.26
HIST 2.13
TBS 2.05

Adults 18-49
UNI 1.79
NBC 1.64 (1.3/4)
CBS 1.49 (1.2/4)
Fox 1.48 (1.2/4)
ABC 1.24 (1.0/3)
TBS 1.10
TEL 0.96
BET 0.94
USA 0.89
TNT 0.78

Adults 25-54
CBS 1.96 (1.7/5)
NBC 1.96 (1.7/5)
UNI 1.71
Fox 1.65 (1.4/4)
ABC 1.52 (1.3/4)
TBS 1.14
USA 1.01
TNT 0.94
TEL 0.91
HIS 0.89

SEASON TO DATE

Total Viewers (in millions)
CBS 11.02 (Even with last season )
ABC 7.65 (-6%)
NBC 6.89 (-4%)
Fox 6.61 (-21%)
4-nets 32.17 (-7%)

CW 1.66 (+5%)
TEL 1.42 (+17%)
UNI 3.66 (+1%)

Adults 18-49 (Rating/share)
ABC 2.2/6 (-8%)
CBS 2.6/8 (-4%)
NBC 2.3/7 (-5%)
Fox 2.4/7 (-20%)
4-nets 9.5/28 (-10%)

CW 0.7/2 (Even)
TEL 0.6/2 (+20%)
UNI 1.5/4 (Even)

Adults 25-54
CBS 3.5/9 (-3%)
NBC 2.8/7 (Even)
ABC 2.7/7 (-10%)
Fox 2.7/7 (-23%)
4-nets 11.7/30 (-9%)

CW 0.7/2 (Even)
TEL 0.6/2 (+20%)
UNI 1.5/4 (Even)

Adults 18-34
Fox 2.1/7 (-16%)
NBC 1.8/6 (-5%)
ABC 1.7/6 (-6%)
CBS 1.7/6 (Even)
4-nets 7.3/25 (-8%)

CW 0.6/2 (-6%)
TEL 0.6/2 (+20%)
UNI 1.3/4 (-13%)

Related stories

CBS Tucks Movie Ad Cash Under Its 'Dome'

CBS' 'Under the Dome' Dips But Still Dominates In Third Week

CBS, Time Warner Cable Talks Seen Extending for Several More Weeks

Get more from Variety.com: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter