World Cup Final Draws Record Viewership on Fox and Telemundo

World Cup Final Sets New Viewership Records

The World Cup final, featuring Spain's 1-0 victory over Argentina at MetLife Stadium, attracted an unprecedented audience on Fox. According to Nielsen data, the match pulled in 38.9 million viewers in English, peaking around 51.7 million, making it the most-watched English-language soccer broadcast ever in the United States.

Fox broadcast all 104 World Cup matches in English and maintained strong ratings throughout the tournament, despite the U.S. men's national team exiting in the Round of 16 after a loss to Belgium. Across Fox, FS1, and Tubi, the network averaged 7.73 million viewers for the entire competition. This marks a major jump from previous tournaments, with 3.59 million average viewers in 2022 and 2.77 million in 2018.

Spanish-Language Broadcast Also Breaks Records

Telemundo drew 23.9 million viewers for the final, setting a record for Spanish-language soccer broadcasts in the U.S. The channel also achieved a new high for the third-place match between England and France, attracting 7.7 million viewers.

The third-place game itself was a hit on Fox, with an average of 13.13 million viewers tuning in including pregame coverage. Both Fox and Telemundo established fresh records for third-place match audiences in their respective languages.

Stars Fueling Interest Across the Nation

The excitement on the field helped drive these viewing numbers. Players like Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, and Folarin Balogun captured the attention of sports fans across America. Their performances elevated the tournament’s appeal, contributing to these historic ratings.