ESPN Was Bombarded With Cable Viewers Thanks to the Savannah Bananas

The baseball game featuring the Bananas at Fenway Park was the most-watched sports program over the holiday weekend!

I had the opportunity to go to Atlanta for a couple of assignments this year, but my biggest trip was to Boston to photograph the Savannah Bananas at Fenway Park. Playing at Major League ballparks was not new for the Bananas, but that was my first trip on a plane since my honeymoon in 2011. I’ve photographed the Savannah Bananas many times over the years, but the energy at a sold-out Fenway Park was nothing like I’ve experienced before. While it was a lot of work, and I didn’t have much time to / Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Not only did the Savannah Bananas sell out Fenway Park, but fans who couldn't attend the game in Boston tuned in to watch by the hundreds-of-thousands to watch on ESPN. According to league owner/founder Jesse Cole, 837,000 viewers tuned in to the cable broadcast, making it July 5th's most-watched primetime sports program across all of cable. Factor in the fans that watched the game on ESPN+, Disney+ and other streaming services, and the vieweship exceeds a million! Keep in mind, there was already a sold-out event at Fenway with over 37,000 fans in attendance.

Cole took to his LinkedIn and other social platforms to graciously thank all the loyal Bananas fans and anyone that tuned in during the game.

It was the most-watched sports program in primetime across all of cable on July 5th! Thank you Banana Nation!

We've come a long way. When we first started, we could have never imagined we'd even get the chance to be on ESPN, let alone broadcast our game on primetime. I remember when our logo made it on SportsCenter for a few seconds and we thought that was the biggest thing in the world.

And now while including ESPN+, Disney+ and YouTube, to having over 1 million fans watching us live is unbelievable.

I'm truly grateful for our team and broadcast team for all their work in making this happen and producing our show. We still have a lot of work to do to improve, but seeing this response is pretty special.

- Jesse Cole, Founder Savannah Bananas

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Fans can always watch the Bananas' games on the team's YouTube channel. But they are also streamed on ESPN+, Disney+ and a few other streaming services. After selling out Fenway, the Bananas are also selling out other MLB stadiums including the Phillies and Cardinals stadiums in Philadelphia and St. Louis.

Savannah Bananas News and Game Info

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