Soccer

Record-Breaking Viewership Highlights Global Soccer Audiences in 2026

Fox, Telemundo, and streaming platforms report historic numbers amid World Cup excitement

Record-Breaking Telecasts

The U.S. men's national team delivered a historic moment when its Round of 16 victory over Belgium attracted 33 million viewers on FOX, marking the largest audience ever recorded for a soccer broadcast in the United States.

Spanish-language audiences also set a new benchmark, as the Mexico-England matchup on Telemundo and Peacock averaged 23.2 million viewers, establishing a record for Spanish-language telecasts.

NBC Sports capitalized on the momentum with strong numbers across its portfolio, including a 4.2 million-viewer average for the final round of the Travelers Championship, the most watched since 2002, a 4.0 million-viewer average for the Yankees-Red Sox Sunday Night Baseball game, the most watched in fifteen years, and a 1.4 million-viewer average for the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, the highest since 2005.

Even traditional baseball events saw spikes, with FOX’s Fourth of July Saturday Baseball drawing 3.3 million viewers, a 70 percent increase over the previous year.

The MLB All-Star Game Selection Show on FOX pulled 5.9 million viewers, the largest audience for the program since its 2007 inception.

TNT Sports reported a 21 percent rise in its MLB regular-season coverage, averaging 466,000 viewers.

On the global stage, Canada’s match against Morocco averaged 5.4 million viewers, the most watched Canada game ever at the FIFA World Cup.

Prime Video’s inaugural NBA season benefited from a 28 percent jump in international viewership, underscoring the growing reach of streaming platforms.

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