• by Wayne Friedman , July 23, 2007

Halfway through the world's most popular cycling race and cable network Versus' Tour de France ratings are surprisingly stable--if not up a bit--against last season's numbers.

Given all the concerns over doping scandals--and the fact that an American cyclist is not among the favorites to win the overall title--total live program viewer impressions are up 5% to an average 219,779 homes on the network through the race's first 11 days. Live household impressions are down 3% to 172,869, with the race's live household ratings down 8% to a 0.24.

"Despite the fact of doping scandals, the sport in this country has some real core fans," says Brad Adgate, senior vice president and corporate research director for media buying company, Horizon Media.

These numbers are a far cry from the heyday of Lance Armstrong and his seven Tour de France victories. Those numbers dropped last year, despite the fact that another American won--Floyd Landis.

At the start of the race last year, a doping scandal threw out a number of major contenders. After Landis' Tour win, he tested positive for drugs--which he has vehemently denied--calling his victory into question.

Given that it's a niche TV sport, with a niche TV audience, Adgate believes it says good things about the sport for U.S. TV viewers. He adds that perhaps it is due to the fact that "Americans have won about half the Tour de Frances in the last 20 years. It's extraordinary." Another explanation for the steady ratings is that this year's Tour de France is closer--at this time of the race versus a year ago--with five to seven contenders still vying for the overall famed yellow jersey, the so-called Maillot Jeune.