World Cup Final Draws Record Viewership for Fox and Telemundo

The final match of the World Cup became a huge win for Fox, attracting an audience that smashed previous records as Spain edged Argentina 1-0 at MetLife Stadium. The broadcast pulled in 38.9 million viewers, marking the highest-ever English-language soccer viewership in the United States. At its peak, the audience swelled to about 51.7 million, according to Nielsen figures released recently.

Fox aired all 104 matches throughout the tournament in English, maintaining strong ratings even after the U.S. men's national team was knocked out by Belgium in the Round of 16. Over the course of the event, the network averaged 7.73 million viewers across Fox, FS1, and Tubi platforms. This showed a sharp rise compared to the previous World Cups, which averaged 3.588 million viewers in 2022 and 2.77 million in 2018.

Spanish-Language Broadcasts Also Hit New Highs

Telemundo delivered record numbers as well, with 23.9 million viewers tuning in for the final. This made it the most-watched Spanish-language soccer broadcast ever in the country.

The excitement on the field, combined with the presence of global stars like Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, and Folarin Balogun, helped draw in American sports fans. These players gained major recognition during the World Cup.

Strong Ratings Extend Beyond the Final

The third-place game between England and France also attracted a large audience. Fox averaged 13.13 million viewers for the match and its pregame coverage, while Telemundo recorded 7.7 million viewers. Both broadcasts set new records for third-place matches in either English or Spanish on U.S. television.