The United States men’s national soccer team recently shattered records for viewership, achieving the highest ratings in American soccer history. Despite the team’s disappointing 4-1 defeat to Belgium in the knockout stage, the match generated significant excitement, drawing an impressive 33.086 million viewers, as reported by Nielsen Media Research.
During the peak viewing period from 9:15 to 9:30 PM Eastern Time, the audience surged to 41.033 million. According to Fox, the network broadcasting the World Cup in English in the U.S., this was the most-watched telecast of any kind since Super Bowl LX, which attracted 125.6 million viewers in February.
Furthermore, Fox identified this match as the most-viewed non-NFL broadcast since Game 7 of the 2016 World Series. The USMNT had previously set a new viewing record during their round of 32 match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, which pulled in 26.4 million viewers.
Other Matches Also Draw Strong Audiences
The interest in World Cup soccer extends beyond just the U.S. team. Nielsen Media Research revealed that 21.742 million viewers tuned in to watch the Mexico versus England last-16 match on Sunday. This event became the most-watched non-USMNT World Cup broadcast in English-language history.
When factoring in audiences from Telemundo and Peacock, the total viewership for that match averaged an astounding 44.84 million. These figures outperformed the New York Knicks’ title-clinching Game 5 win in the NBA Finals, which garnered 24.5 million viewers, and approached the audience numbers for the AFC and NFC championship games, which had averages of 48.6 million and 46.1 million, respectively.
