New York (AFP) – Emmy Awards It hit a new low viewership Monday night, with an estimated audience of 5.9 million people smaller than the COVID-19 party that crashed two years ago.

Nielsen said the award ceremony for the best television work, “Ted Lasso” took the titles for Best Comedy and Best Drama for “Progression,” down from the 7.4 million people who watched it in 2021.

Usually shown on Sunday nights, the Emmys were moved to Mondays to make way for the first “Sunday Night Football” game the night before on NBC. She couldn’t escape football, though, as she competed against a tight Monday Night Football game.

Emmys is hosted by Kenan Thompson of Saturday Night Live.

The Emmys’ previous low point, with 6.1 million people, came with a show that was significantly undersized due to the pandemic in 2020.

While football has had its effect, Emmys ratings have been steadily declining since awards began to be dominated by shows on cable and streaming services. With so many TV shows being offered, there are fewer programs that attract large audiences that were routine in the days when broadcast television dominated.

The last time the Emmys’ viewership exceeded 10 million was in 2018, when it reached 10.2 million viewers. The Emmys had 21.8 million viewers in 2000, a level they will likely never reach again.

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For more information on this year’s Emmy Awards, visit: www.apnews.com/EmmyAwards