Fall Classic Final Game Captures Over 50 Million Audience Members In the United States, Canadian and Japan Markets.
The thrilling 11-inning clash that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers overcome the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 attracted a aggregate over 50 million watchers in the United States, Canadian, and Japan markets. Major League Baseball reported this represents the highest-rated Fall Classic finale after the 1991 edition showdown between the Twins and Atlanta Braves.
Broadcast Viewership Breakdown
Last Saturday’s memorable game drew 27.33M viewers on Fox networks, Fox Deportes and their digital services. Per ratings data, it was the second most-watched broadcast of the week.
It additionally stands as the most-watched Fall Classic game after the 2017 edition final game involving the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, which drew 29.07M. This marks a sixteen percent increase compared to the last finale between the Washington Nationals and Astros, which drew 23.19 million.
In the Nielsen ratings, Game 6 ranked fourth, the fourth game was 7th, the fifth game was eighth, and the third game finished in thirteenth place.
Global Audience Numbers
In the Canadian market, the game drew over 11 million watchers on Sportsnet and the French-language TVA Sports channel. This was the most-watched English program in the country since the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In Japan, where the deciding game began at 9 p.m. in the local time zone, it drew 12 million. This followed last Friday’s sixth game – in which World Series Most Valuable Player Yamamoto gave up one run in six innings – averaged 13.1 million spectators, making it the most-watched World Series game on a single network in the country.
Series Averages and Trends
The entire seven-match World Series recorded 15.71 million viewers on the Fox network, a two percent rise from the previous year’s Dodgers-Yankees series. This represents the initial instance after 2015 and 2016 that the World Series has seen audience increases for two consecutive seasons.
Counting the opening game broadcast on Univision, the total American viewership was 16.1 million. The overall World Series average in the Japanese market was 9.7M and 8.1M in the Canadian market.
The full MLB Postseason on Fox, FS1 and FS2 averaged over 8 million viewers, an 8% increase compared to the previous year and Fox’s best postseason performance after 2017.
MLB announced that the Fall Classic was televised in 203 countries and territories by 44 media partners in 16 various tongues.
