As the calendar turned and the weather warmed, Q2 brought a number of exciting television events, like the March Madness finals and the Masters. The TV political ad landscape also warmed up, as the Wisconsin Supreme Court race and the New Jersey gubernatorial primary captured major ad dollars.
While linear TV remained the dominant viewing platform for these events, streaming was on the rise, especially for emerging sports like the WNBA. In our latest quarterly television insights report, AdImpact takes a closer look at the viewership data, ad airings and advertising trends of these marquee Q2 moments – and what marketers need to know to fine-tune their strategies for the second half of 2025 and beyond.
March Madness
The two men’s NCAA Final Four games on April 5 averaged 23 million viewers across CBS television stations, Paramount+, Fubo, Hulu, and other streaming platforms. The first game between Auburn and Florida reached a peak viewership of 25.7 million at 7:59 pm ET. Average viewership was 20.9 million, with linear television accounting for 59% of viewership. YouTube and YouTubeTV captured 23% and other streaming platforms made up the remaining 18%.
The nightcap between Duke and Houston averaged 26 million viewers, peaking at 29 million at 10:07 pm ET. The platform breakdown was similar to the early game, with linear accounting for 58% of viewership, followed by YouTube and YouTubeTV at 23% and other streamers accounting for 18%.
It’s clear that major annual sporting events remain popular on broadcast television, so brands should continue investing in tentpole events on linear television in order to reach sports viewers.
Caitlin Clark and the Health of Women’s Sports
Interest in women’s sports is no doubt on the rise, with Deloitte finding that global spending on women’s sports hit $1.88 billion in 2024, nearly double from $981 million in 2023. The WNBA has especially seen rising interest, having recently signed a media deal worth $200 million.
Caitlin Clark has been a major driver for increased interest in the WNBA, as home ticket sales for the Indiana Fever were up 318% during her rookie year compared to the previous season. With the Fever making a play for the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup, an in-season tournament, viewership averaged 1.3 million for their game against the Connecticut Sun on June 17.
The game, which was available on NBA TV, FuboTV, and other streaming platforms, peaked at 1.7 million viewers at 8:29 pm ET. Streaming was the dominant platform as YouTube and YouTube TV accounted for 38% of viewing while other streaming platforms added 27%, for a combined 65% share. Traditional linear made up 35% of viewers.
With Amazon Prime Video getting 30 national games each year, the WNBA has recognized the popularity of streaming platforms to reach viewers. As brands look for ways to engage with women’s sports fans, investing in streaming is a smart play.
High-Value Sporting Events
Formula One (F1) has also risen in popularity across the globe, seeing a 5.7% fanbase increase in the series since 2021. It is especially popular among women and younger viewers, as 41% of F1 fans are women, and interest has grown among those aged 16 to 24. Netflix’s “Drive to Survive” was a major factor in generating interest, along with a growing presence of races in the United States (first Austin, then Miami, and now Las Vegas).
The F1 Miami Grand Prix was broadcast on ABC television stations, ESPN+, FuboTV and other platforms on May 4. The race averaged 2.5 million viewers, with a peak of 3 million at 5:25 pm ET, about an hour and a half after it started. Linear television accounted for 70% of viewership, other streamers made up 18.6% and YouTube and YouTubeTV captured 11.4%.
Similarly, the final round of the Masters golf tournament aired on April 13 on CBS television stations, ESPN+, Paramount+, Masters.com, and the Masters app. The final, which ended in a dramatic, sudden-death playoff between Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose, averaged 19.7 million with a peak of 25 million at 6:52 pm ET. Linear television made up 58.4% of viewership, while YouTube and YouTubeTV made up 23.5% and other streaming pulled in 18.1%.
The 125th U.S. Open, which aired on Sunday, June 15, on NBC television stations and streaming services like Peacock and FuboTV, averaged 10.1 million viewers, with a peak of 12.8 million at 4:02 pm ET. The number of golf viewers tailed off following a 90-minute rain delay, with some viewers returning once play resumed at 5:40 pm ET. Linear viewing was slightly less than the Masters, at 55%, while other streamers made up 23% and YouTube/YouTubeTV came in at 22% of viewers.
Comparing the ad breakdown of F1 Miami and the Masters, Tech & Telecommunications and Health & Pharmaceuticals both ranked among the top three advertiser categories, indicating some overlap in their target audiences. For the Masters Final, Tech & Telecommunications was the number one advertiser category with 953 airings, while Health & Pharmaceuticals ranked third with 616 airings. Services came in second with 744 airings. For F1 Miami, Health & Pharmaceuticals ranked number one with 5,972 airings, while Tech & Telecommunications ranked third with 3.943 airings. Consumer Packaged Goods ranked second with 3,945 airings.
Given their sponsorship and presenter status, IBM had the most ad airings during the Masters with 536, followed by CBS and AT&T, with 390 and 374 ad airings, respectively. Notable non-sponsors included Ozempic (103 airings), Chewy (101 airings), Viking Cruises (101 airings) and Tecovas Boots (92 airings).
ABC had the most ad airings during F1 Miami, with 2,256 airings, thanks to its presenter status of the event. Verizon, an event sponsor, came in third with 631 ad airings. Other notable non-sponsor advertisers included Cotton Inc. (691 airings), Allstate (412 airings), Neutrogena (410 airings), Haribo (403 airings), and McDonald’s (397 airings).
While Formula 1 has made inroads as far as popularity goes, golf remains more closely watched, as seen by its dominating viewership over other sporting events. However, both sports provide brands with an opportunity to reach more affluent audiences of different age groups. The presence of IBM, Viking Cruises, and Tecovas Boots suggests an older, affluent base for golf events, while the presence of Neutrogena and Haribo among the advertisers for F1 shows that the audience skews younger and more female.
Off-Cycle Races Show Their Force
Data as of 7/16
Following record spending during the 2023-2024 political cycle, momentum continued into 2025. AdImpact tracked $737.8 million in aired spending through the first half of the year, which is significantly higher than the aired spending to date in 2021 ($457 million) and 2023 ($493 million). Some of the biggest drivers of political ad spending this quarter were the high-profile New Jersey gubernatorial and New York City mayoral primaries.
New Jersey’s gubernatorial primary was the most expensive New Jersey election on record, with over $89 million in political ad spending targeting the contest. This was a staggering 913% increase from the 2021 primary. Additionally, it became the fourth most expensive non-presidential primary on record, surpassing ad spending totals in last year’s California ($75M) and Maryland ($62M) Senate primaries.
Democrat Josh Gottheimer received the most ad backing in the contest, at $23.3 million, making up almost a quarter of all primary spending. More than half of that support came from the outside group Affordable New Jersey ($14.8 million).
Eventual Democratic winner Mikie Sherrill, ranked fourth in ad support, saw $12.7 million backing her candidacy, while the Republican winner, Jack Ciattarelli, saw $6.1 million in spending, first among all Republican candidates and fifth overall.
Across the George Washington Bridge, the New York City mayoral primary received $38.4 million in ad spending. A majority of the ad dollars ($20.4 million) supported Andrew Cuomo’s candidacy. The highest-spending advertiser in the contest was Fix the City Inc., an outside group supporting Cuomo. The group spent $15.7 million. The second-highest advertiser, the Zohran Mamdani campaign, spent $5.5 million. While Mamdani won the Democratic nomination, Andrew Cuomo has announced he is running in the general election as an independent. Cuomo’s bid will likely drive increased spending in the Big Apple’s mayoral general election this November.
While we have yet to track major ad reservations targeting the NYC mayoral general election, significant spending and reservations targeting other key general elections are already underway. Greater Garden State, a group backed by the Democratic Governors Association, has already placed $16.2 million in fall prebooking, already more than double the ad investment they made in the 2021 gubernatorial election. Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic nominee for the Virginia gubernatorial election, has already placed $1.6 million in ad spending and reservations targeting the general election. Winsome Earle-Sears, the Republican nominee, has placed $216,000 in ad spending, all on Facebook and Google.
Big Beautiful Spending
As Republicans and Democrats looked to raise awareness of President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill from its announcement in April to its passage in July, more than $75.3 million in ad spending from more than 30 different advertisers targeted the bill. Through June 30, the bill received $40 million in spending supporting its passage compared to $35 million in spending against it.
Almost one in four ad dollars targeting the Big Beautiful Bill came from Republican-backed group Securing American Greatness, as it spent over $17 million targeting 22 different House members across the country in battleground districts. They’ve also aired ads praising Republican incumbents who voted for the bill, and ads attacking Democrats who opposed the bill.
Almost half of all Big Beautiful Bill-related ad spending has directly targeted Congressional incumbents up for re-election this cycle, with $36.8 million in spending through June 30. On the Senate side, Susan Collins of Maine and Thom Tillis of North Carolina have seen the most bill-related spending targeting their seats, at $1.9 million and $3.8 million, respectively.
Since April 1st, Big Beautiful Bill-related ads have aired 53,000 times on broadcast TV, accounting for over 22% of all political broadcast airings across the country.
Read our blog covering Big Beautiful Bill spending from April to July for more information:
As the 2025 general election cycle continues and the 2026 campaign ramps up in earnest, we expect political ad spending to remain strong.
What This Means For You
TTentpole television events like March Madness and the Masters still generate massive audiences, seeing significant interest across linear and streaming platforms. Emerging sports like the WNBA and F1 provide new opportunities to reach new audiences, especially women and younger viewers. Additionally, political ad spending remains strong, with off-year races breaking previous spending records.
As advertisers start rolling out their H2 plans, live sports should be a major focus. With the return of NCAA and NFL football, the MLB playoffs, and the continuation of the WNBA and F1 seasons, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved. For brands seeking a more targeted approach, it’s important to be mindful of the viewership breakdown across platforms. For instance, streaming accounted for 65% of viewers for the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup game, so brands looking to engage with younger females should emphasize a buy on CTV.
For political campaigns, linear and streaming represent valuable channels to amplify their message. With the majority of spending around the Big Beautiful Bill supporting its passage, television campaigns can help advance legislation or promote certain messages. It can also help raise awareness for candidates in off-year races, like in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race and the New York City mayoral race.
Stay tuned for next quarter’s report, where we’ll look at the kickoffs of NCAA and NFL football, the U.S. Open tennis finals, the MTV VMA Awards, and the Emmys.
METHODOLOGY
All viewership data is generated from data collected through AdImpact’s Advanced TV panel of monitored Smart TVs, totaling 23 million TVs. This data includes viewing patterns and devices tracked using automated content recognition (ACR) technology.
The distinction between linear and non-linear content is based on whether it’s viewed via a set-top box, direct cable connection, or antenna (linear) or through a TV native app or OTT streaming device (non-linear). This data specifically focuses on live programming for the event and excludes non-live content.