The nail-biting 11-inning contest that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers overcome the Blue Jays 5-4 averaged a combined 51M watchers across the US, Canada, and Japan markets. MLB reported this is the highest-rated World Series finale after the 1991 edition showdown featuring the Twins and Atlanta Braves.
Broadcast Viewership Breakdown
Last Saturday’s memorable game secured 27.33M viewers on Fox channels, Fox Deportes and Fox’s digital services. Per Nielsen, it was the second highest-rated broadcast of the previous week.
It also stands as the most-watched Fall Classic game since the 2017 edition Game 7 between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, which averaged 29.07M. This marks a sixteen percent increase compared to the previous Game 7 between the Nationals and Astros, which drew 23.19 million viewers.
In the Nielsen ratings, the sixth game ranked fourth, the fourth game ranked seventh, Game 5 was 8th, and the third game landed in thirteenth place.
Global Viewership Numbers
In the Canadian market, the game recorded over 11 million watchers on Sportsnet and the French-language TVA Sports. This made it the most-watched English-language broadcast in the country after the 2010 edition Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the final game began at 9 PM in the local time zone, it averaged 12 million viewers. This came after the previous Friday’s Game 6 – in which Fall Classic MVP Yamamoto allowed a single run in six innings – recorded 13.1 million viewers, making it the highest-rated Fall Classic game on a sole broadcaster in Japan.
Overall Totals and Patterns
The entire seven-match World Series averaged 15.71M audience members on the Fox network, a 2% increase from last year’s Dodgers versus Yankees matchup. This represents the initial instance after 2015 and 2016 that the Fall Classic has recorded viewership growth for two straight seasons.
Counting the Game 1 telecast on Univision, the complete American viewership was 16.1 million. The total World Series viewership in Japan was 9.7M and 8.1 million in the Canadian market.
The full playoffs on Fox and its sister channels drew over 8 million viewers, an eight percent increase compared to last year and Fox’s best playoff performance since 2017.
Major League Baseball announced that the Fall Classic was broadcast in over 200 nations and regions by 44 broadcasting partners in sixteen different tongues.
