Yesterday’s opening round of the NFL Draft was, more than anything else, a glimpse into the future.
With the world of sports crippled by the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL – the most popular league in the US – took advantage of the millions of people confined to their homes as part of tight restrictions to confine the spread of the deadly respiratory illness.
In what was the first virtual draft in league history, an estimated 15.6 million viewers tuned in to last night’s event across ABC, ESPN, NFL Network, ESPN Deportes and digital channels.
The average audience represented a 37 per cent increase from last year’s draft (11.4 million) and peaked with 19.6 million viewers from 8:45 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET.
One could easily argue that with major countries and cities still on lockdown due to COVID-19, which has infected almost three million people worldwide and killed almost 50,000 Americans so far, that people were glued to their televisions due to limited options.
But this was much more than making the best of a bad situation. This is possibly the way forward and not just for sports.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the picks from his basement, NFL general managers called in the picks and trades from their homes and cameras captured the reactions of the prospects when they learned they had been selected while looking on with loved ones at their homes.
Not surprisingly, it wasn’t the first sports event to be held virtually.
A week ago, the WNBA was also forced to make a similar decision to host its first-ever virtual draft.
It meant that no players, coaches, general managers, family members or even members of the media were on site for the draft.
And similarly, it was one of the most-watched WNBA Drafts in almost two decades.
The event was the most-watched in 16 years and was also the second most-watched WNBA Draft in ESPN’s history.
It averaged 387,000 viewers – a 123 per cent increase on the number of people who watched the 2019 Draft.
Additionally, the Draft also made an impact across WNBA and NBA social media handles, generating 6.5 million video views (up 165 per cent compared to last year) and 1.3 million minutes watched (up 237 per cent over last year). Not coincidentally, the WNBA Instagram handle had its highest year-over-year growth, generating more than 3.8 million video views on Draft Day.
There is also speculation that both the NBA and NHL drafts which are both scheduled to be held in June, will also follow similar formats, with the threat of COVID-19 still expected to be a serious one at that time.
Based on those statistics alone, it is not far fetched to imagine similar virtual drafts being held in the coming years.
But again, these drastic changes are not limited to sporting events.
The emergence of Zoom meeting software has made online meetings a daily routine.
Even here in Barbados, journalists, while being part of the essential services have been able to practice social distancing by engaging in press conferences with high-level public figures, including the Prime Minister, through the use of technology.
Post COVID-19, there is no reason why this should not continue.
In fact, the general public has become more engrossed in this new medium, while also becoming more familiar with the print members of the Fourth Estate, whom they have not been able to see before.
In just a few weeks, the world has changed drastically and it has forced us to change as well.