NXT on USA Continues Major Viewship Plummet from Premiere Episode

At week four of the “Wednesday Night Wars,” both AEW and NXT continue to deliver products that intrigue their audiences. While top executives state that there are no “Wednesday Night Wars,” the actions that occur both on screen and backstage do not indicate that statement is true.

Actions such as Cody breaking the throne in mockery of Triple H, Dustin Rhodes talking about how he was held back in WWE and wanted to be free, Chris Jericho cutting a promo on how WWE gave Jake Hager a bad gimmick, and Cody most recently stating that the ropes is not an “invisible wall” unlike “the other company” are clear jabs to WWE.

Despite the WWE/NXT vs. AEW rivalry heating up, ratings are not reflecting this same level of intensity.

According to Alfred Konuwa of Forbes, NXT on USA came in at number 21 for the night among the 18-49 demographic. This is down from 712,000 in week three of the Wednesday Night Wars and week five of the USA launch. In week one of the USA launch, it was ranked at number 4, with a total of 1.2 million views.

Since its debut, NXT has dropped nearly 60 percent from its premiere viewership, and has declined each week. As far as the Wednesday Night Wars is concerned, AEW is winning handily. Although their viewership is not on the upswing either, they racked in nearly 300,000 more viewers than the black and yellow brand.

With the rumors of NXT moving out of Full Sail to start traveling in venues with more capacity to create a larger feel, it is clear that those numbers are not sitting well with the company. Especially, since many people feel that NXT is the best brand of the entire WWE right now.

On the latest episode of NXT, Finn Balor returned to television after a hiatus since SummerSlam, and his first time on NXT television since 2016. In what was initially a hero’s welcome from the fans, turned into a arena full of shock and awe, as Balor turned heel for the first time in his WWE career.

Perhaps this could have been a way to boost viewership, especially since Balor has been competing as a babyface on NXT live events. One thing is for sure — Balor’s turn surely created buzz (although viewership did not reflect that), and it could end the weekly NXT streak of declining in ratings.

Follow Chris Featherstone on Twitter @chrisprolific and the Pancakes and Powerslams Show @cravewrestling.