Fall Classic Final Game Draws 51M Viewers In the United States, Canadian and Japan Markets.
The thrilling 11-inning contest that saw the Dodgers overcome the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 attracted a aggregate 51 million watchers across the US, Canadian, and Japanese markets. MLB reported this is the most-watched World Series Game 7 since the 1991 showdown featuring the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves.
Television Viewership Details
Last Saturday’s epic game drew 27.33M viewers on Fox Sports networks, its Spanish-language channel and their streaming platforms. Per ratings data, it was the second highest-rated broadcast of the previous week.
It additionally stands as the top-rated World Series matchup since the 2017 edition Game 7 between the Dodgers and Astros, which averaged over 29 million. This marks a sixteen percent improvement over the last Game 7 featuring the Nationals and Astros, which attracted 23.19 million viewers.
In the Nielsen ratings, Game 6 placed 4th, the fourth game ranked seventh, Game 5 was eighth, and Game 3 finished in thirteenth place.
International Viewership Figures
In Canada, the climactic game drew 11.6M watchers on the Sportsnet network and the French TVA Sports. This was the most-watched English broadcast in Canada after the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In Japan, where the final contest started at 9 PM local time, it attracted 12 million viewers. This came after the previous Friday’s Game 6 – in which World Series MVP Yamamoto allowed a single run in six innings – averaged 13.1 million viewers, making it the highest-rated World Series matchup on a sole broadcaster in Japan.
Series Totals and Patterns
The full seven-match series recorded 15.71M audience members on Fox, a two percent rise from last year’s Dodgers versus Yankees series. This represents the initial instance after 2015 and 2016 that the World Series has seen viewership growth for two consecutive seasons.
Including the Game 1 telecast on Univision, the total American average reached 16.1M. The total Fall Classic viewership in Japan was 9.7M and 8.1 million in Canada.
The complete playoffs on Fox and its sister channels drew 8.09 million watchers, an eight percent increase over the previous year and Fox’s best postseason ratings since the 2017 season.
MLB stated that the World Series was televised in 203 nations and regions by 44 media partners in 16 different tongues.
