The thrilling extended clash that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 averaged a aggregate 51M viewers across the US, Canada, and Japanese markets. MLB reported this is the most-watched World Series finale since the 1991 edition contest featuring the Twins and Braves.
Broadcast Ratings Details
Last Saturday’s memorable contest averaged 27.33M viewers on Fox channels, Fox Deportes and Fox’s streaming platforms. According to ratings data, it was the second most-watched broadcast of the week.
It also stands as the most-watched World Series matchup after the 2017 edition final game between the Dodgers and Astros, which drew 29.07M. This represents a sixteen percent increase compared to the last Game 7 between the Nationals and Houston Astros, which attracted 23.19M.
In the Nielsen ratings, the sixth game ranked fourth, the fourth game was 7th, Game 5 was 8th, and Game 3 finished in thirteenth position.
International Audience Figures
In Canada, the game averaged 11.6 million viewers on Sportsnet and the French-language TVA Sports channel. This made it the most-watched English broadcast in the country since the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the deciding game started at 9 p.m. in the local time zone, it drew 12 million viewers. This came after the previous Friday’s sixth game – where World Series Most Valuable Player Yamamoto gave up a single run in six innings – drew over 13 million viewers, making it the most-watched Fall Classic game on a sole broadcaster in the country.
Overall Averages and Trends
The full seven-match World Series drew 15.71M viewers on Fox, a two percent increase from the previous year’s Dodgers versus Yankees matchup. This marks the first time since 2015 and 2016 that the World Series has recorded audience increases for two consecutive years.
Counting the Game 1 telecast on the Univision network, the total American average was 16.1M. The overall Fall Classic average in Japan was 9.7M and 8.1M in the Canadian market.
The full playoffs on Fox, FS1 and FS2 drew over 8 million viewers, an 8% increase compared to last year and Fox’s best postseason performance since 2017.
MLB announced that the World Series was broadcast in 203 countries and territories by 44 broadcasting partners in sixteen various tongues.
