WGR makes the list...

[ckg279]

of the Top Sports Radio Stations of 2021.

WGR(SportsRadio 550) was listed the 5th best sports radio station in a mid-market, with Cleveland's WKRK(92.3 the Fan)leading the list. (Cleveland had ANOTHER sports outlet, WKNR(850 ESPN Cleveland)crack the top 20 list. It's interesting to note that Audacy had 6 of the top 10 mid-market stations and 5 of the top 10 in major markets; Boston's WBZ-FM(98.5 the Sports Hub)was #1 on that list.

 

[Rusty Bridges]

As compiled by?

 

[TheBigA]

As compiled by?

Barrett Sports Media:

Barrett Sports Media’s Top 20 Major Market Sports Radio Stations of 2021

"A total of 35 sports radio stations were eligible for voting consideration in the Major Market Sports Radio Stations category."

www.barrettsportsmedia.com

Barrett Sports Media’s Top 20 Mid Market Sports Radio Stations of 2021

"A total of 57 sports radio stations were eligible for voting consideration in the Mid Market Sports Radio Stations category."

www.barrettsportsmedia.com

 

[Rusty Bridges]

Meh. More puffery and industry hype, coin of the realm. Seems like a full plate of self-hype for Barrett.
But yeah... congrats to WGR. Pop the Dom.

 

[SirRoxalot]

There's not much question that WGR is the best sports station in Buffalo. BTW, how many other medium market stations have an NFL team and an NHL team?

 

[TheBigA]

There's not much question that WGR is the best sports station in Buffalo. BTW, how many other medium market stations have an NFL team and an NHL team?

Funny question. Buffalo was not always a medium market. There was a time....

 

[Marchant26]

Please. WGR is horrible radio with no competition. It's so stale and boring. Wish there was a local alternative.

 

[tbolt909]

There's not much question that WGR is the best sports station in Buffalo. BTW, how many other medium market stations have an NFL team and an NHL team?

New Orleans has the NFL and NBA. Cleveland has 3 pro teams (no hockey). What's your point? Cincinnati has baseball and NFL. Several markets outside the top 20 have 2 or more pro teams.

How many people are actually listening to a hockey game on the Radio? You'll have a tough time finding 10 people who do...

 

[Rusty Bridges]

How many people are actually listening to a hockey game on the Radio? You'll have a tough time finding 10 people who do...

OK , 27 ... but that still makes you wrong.

Please. WGR is horrible radio with no competition. It's so stale and boring. Wish there was a local alternative.

Top 3, often #1 with Men 25-54 ... but yeah, "horrible."
I'm not a big fan of WGR, but that's why there's button and dials on radios.
The station does a lot of things right ... and a lot of people listen to it. Fact.

 

[Marchant26]

It doesn't matter what the numbers say. The have a rabid built in audience that loves sports. The numbers do not indicate how good the station is. It's not good. Plain and simple.

 

[tbolt909]

Top 3, often #1 with Men 25-54 ... but yeah, "horrible."
I'm not a big fan of WGR, but that's why there's button and dials on radios.
The station does a lot of things right ... and a lot of people listen to it. Fact.

The ratings tend to plummet in Spring and Summer. If the Bills leave Buffalo, WGR will become a 1 share station or worse like 1520 AM. The Bills are the only thing keeping WGR alive. Fact...

 

[Rusty Bridges]

The ratings tend to plummet in Spring and Summer. If the Bills leave Buffalo, WGR will become a 1 share station or worse like 1520 AM. The Bills are the only thing keeping WGR alive. Fact...

If "ifs" and "buts" were candy and nuts, it'd be Christmas every day. Arguably, if the Bills left Buffalo, WGR would have insane ratings for months as sports fans and non-sports fans cume the station and listen for hours, as would WBEN... maybe even WBFO. That noted, the Bills are staying, so much for the 1 share theory. Even when the Persons 12+ numbers, the only numbers we see here, slide, the station remains very competitive Men 25-54.

It doesn't matter what the numbers say. The have a rabid built in audience that loves sports. The numbers do not indicate how good the station is. It's not good. Plain and simple.

The "built in audience that loves sports" is an integral part of the station's success. And one thing's certain, Audacy banks more on what the numbers say than posters on a message board, including me when I rip on formats or stations. As noted earlier, I don't carry water for WGR or Audacy. I think we can, for the most part, agree that 107.7 is an abysmal wreck. The Wolf howl sound effect makes it sounds like it's caught in a trap.

 

[flybynight]

The ratings tend to plummet in Spring and Summer. If the Bills leave Buffalo, WGR will become a 1 share station or worse like 1520 AM. The Bills are the only thing keeping WGR alive. Fact...

If what's and if's were jpegs and gifs......what a pinteresting world this would be.

If a local draw like the Bills leaves any town, it would negatively impact the sports station. Bills aren't leaving anytime soon. Most of radio will be much closer to dead by that time anyway. Smell the flowers ffs.

 

[Yeziknoradio]

MEH, I still say, when news broke out, WGR Broke in!! 1520 could have had this award! Too bad Sinclair had to sell WGR and mess everything up.

 

[ckg279]

New Orleans has the NFL and NBA. Cleveland has 3 pro teams (no hockey). What's your point? Cincinnati has baseball and NFL. Several markets outside the top 20 have 2 or more pro teams.

How many people are actually listening to a hockey game on the Radio? You'll have a tough time finding 10 people who do...

Point of order: Even though it's the AHL, Cleveland STILL has hockey and they draw very well. In 2019-20(the last season before COVID entered our lives,), the Monsters averaged just over 9,000 fans. This season, it's dropped a bit(to about 7,000)but is still VERY respectable. (Data comes from HockeyDB.com. )