By James Caldwell, PWTorch assistant editor

Lucha Underground 2015 TV Ratings

The following is an updated break down of Lucha Underground's TV viewership on El Rey Network. This does not include higher viewership on Spanish-language UniMas airing on Saturday afternoons...

- Through 19 episodes in 2015, Lucha has averaged 62,000 viewers per show.

- The peak audience is 102,000 viewers, which occurred three times on February 18, March 25, and April 22.

Feb. 18 featured the Alberto Del Patron vs. El Texano feud, Mar. 25 featured Alberto defending the AAA Title, and Apr. 22 featured the finals of the Trios Tag Tournament.

- The median age is 47.0 years-old, which falls within the 18-49 advertising window and compares favorably to other wrestling shows, including TNA Impact, whose median age is 51.1 years-old on Destination America.

During the first half of the year, Lucha was well outside of the 18-49 window, drawing a median age in the mid-50s. However, Lucha has drawn a younger audience since the March 25 episode...

3/25: 40.2 years-old
4/1: 40.8 years-old
4/8: 34.9 years-old
4/15: 36.8 years-old
4/22: 49.9 years-old
4/29: 46.3 years-old
5/6: 38.7 years-old
5/13: 44.8 years-old
5/20: 44.5 years-old

Only one episode during this current stretch has been outside of the 18-49 window, which has helped Lucha Underground's profile.

Caldwell's Analysis: The overall numbers are not great considering a tape library show like "Miami Vice" draws 70-90,000 viewers on El Rey. It captures the choice that lower-tier networks like El Rey and Destination America have to make between cheaper library shows and original first-run programming (e.g. Lucha and TNA Impact) that draw similar viewership and sponsorship dollars.

Non-WWE wrestling shows have to find a way to stand out in the marketplace and justify TV partners continuing to air their programming. Lucha draws a fraction of Impact's audience, but has certainly helped its cause in recent months by drawing a younger audience, plus having versatility to put the show in front of a larger audience on UniMas on Saturdays. Those two factors will help the argument to continue producing shows in the face of just-okay overall viewership and a lack of broad appeal leaning toward a male-heavy audience.

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