The exciting extended contest that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Toronto Blue Jays by one run averaged a aggregate over 50 million spectators in the US, Canadian, and Japan markets. MLB stated this is the highest-rated Fall Classic Game 7 since the 1991 edition showdown featuring the Twins and Atlanta Braves.
Broadcast Ratings Details
Last Saturday’s memorable game averaged 27.33 million viewers on Fox channels, Fox Deportes and their digital services. According to Nielsen, it was the second highest-rated broadcast of the previous week.
It also stands as the top-rated World Series matchup since the 2017 edition Game 7 involving the Los Angeles Dodgers and Astros, which averaged over 29 million. This marks a 16% improvement compared to the last finale between the Washington Nationals and Astros, which drew 23.19 million viewers.
In the weekly rankings, the sixth game placed fourth, Game 4 was 7th, Game 5 came in eighth, and Game 3 landed in thirteenth place.
Global Audience Numbers
In Canada, the game averaged 11.6 million watchers on the Sportsnet network and the French TVA Sports. This was the highest-rated English-language program in the country since the 2010 edition Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the deciding contest began at 9 p.m. in the local time zone, it drew 12M. This followed last Friday’s sixth game – in which Fall Classic MVP Yamamoto allowed one run in six frames – averaged 13.1 million viewers, making it the most-watched World Series matchup on a sole broadcaster in the country.
Series Totals and Patterns
The entire seven-match series recorded over 15.7 million viewers on the Fox network, a two percent increase from the previous year’s Dodgers versus Yankees matchup. This represents the first time since 2015 and ‘16 that the Fall Classic has seen audience growth for two consecutive seasons.
Including the opening game broadcast on Univision, the total American average reached 16.1 million. The total Fall Classic average in Japan was 9.7 million and 8.1 million in Canada.
The full MLB Postseason on Fox and its sister channels drew 8.09M watchers, an 8% rise over last year and Fox’s best postseason performance after the 2017 season.
MLB reported that the Fall Classic was televised in 203 countries and territories by forty-four media partners in sixteen different tongues.
