While thousands of Filipinos packed the Philippine Arena to show support for our national athletes in the 30th Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) Opening Ceremony, even more people watched the live telecast of the event on ABS-CBN, making the spectacle the most watched program for the entire weekend.
With its dazzling performances of Filipino cultural dances, star-studded production numbers, and appearances of legendary athletes, the 30th SEAG Opening Ceremony registered a national TV rating of 29.2% last Saturday (November 30) based on data from Kantar Media, the highest for all programs that aired on Saturday and Sunday (December 1).
Many viewers also opted to watch the event online, with ABS-CBN News’ Facebook Live of the ceremony hitting 1.8 million views with 63,000 reactions while many also watched on ABS-CBN’s streaming service iWant.
House Speaker and Philippine SEA Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC) Chair Alan Peter Cayetano earlier said in an interview with ABS-CBN News that with ABS-CBN as broadcast partner, Filipinos will be able to watch wherever they may be.
“It will really be a great show. We believe that all Filipinos should have the opportunity to watch and since hindi naman lahat makapunta doon live it’s a big big privilege and honor to have ABS-CBN cover it live so that not only can all Filipinos win as one but enjoy the opening ceremonies as one,” he said.
True enough, Filipinos were united in praise of the SEAG Opening Ceremony on social media, with hashtags and words related to it trending nationwide and even worldwide.
Netizen Ana Jane Bungabong Juntong said on Facebook, “Congratulations! creativity and highly organized opening ceremony. Salute to all! nkaka goosebumps lahat from the venue, performances, lighting of cauldron and fireworks display! 👏👏👏”
On Twitter, @erwin_minglana also posted “NW: ABS-CBN’s live coverage of the opening ceremony of the 30th SEA Games. Got goosebumps! Wow! Truly a world-class of showcasing the Philippines. Godbless to all athletes especially to the Filipino athletes. Mabuhay! #ProudFilipino #WeWinAsOne #SEAGames2019 #30thSEAGAMES.”
Meanwhile, the country’s leading media and entertainment company continues with its coverage of the region’s prestigious biennial multi-sport event through its sports arm, ABS-CBN Sports.
The live broadcast of football, volleyball, and gymnastics competitions can be watched live on ABS-CBN S+A, LIGA, and iWant, as well as the closing ceremony on December 11 at 6:30 pm. S+A’s flagship program “The Score,” hosted by veteran sports anchor Mico Halili, will also air at 9 am and 8 pm for the duration of the games to deliver the latest updates on the medal tally and interviews with winning Filipino athletes and sports analysts.
Apart from football and volleyball matches, iWant will also stream all games for gymnastics and aquatics, and selected events in athletics. Games in men’s basketball, 3×3, and weightlifting featuring Hidilyn Diaz will also be available on demand.
Early this year, ABS-CBN launched the National Cheer Campaign to celebrate Filipino greatness and to rally people to unite and bring honor to the country. The campaign’s anthem “Isigaw Mo #GalingNatinIto,” sung by over 20 OPM artists, will be featured in ABS-CBN Sports’ coverage of the SEA Games.
For sports news and full schedule of ABS-CBN Sports’ coverage of the 2019 SEA Games, tune in on ABS-CBN and ABS-CBN S+A, follow @ABSCBNNews and @ABSCBNSports on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or visit news.abs-cbn.com, sports.abs-cbn.com, and iwant.ph.
For updates, follow @ABSCBNPR on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or visit www.abs-cbn.com/newsroom.
