The nail-biting extra-inning clash where the Dodgers defeat the Blue Jays by one run attracted a combined 51 million spectators across the United States, Canada, and Japan markets. Major League Baseball stated this represents the most-watched World Series Game 7 after the 1991 edition showdown between the Twins and Braves.
Broadcast Ratings Details
Last Saturday’s memorable game averaged 27.33M viewers on Fox networks, Fox Deportes and Fox’s digital services. Per Nielsen, it was the second most-watched program of the week.
It additionally is the top-rated World Series game since the 2017 Game 7 involving the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, which averaged 29.07M. This represents a 16% increase over the previous finale between the Washington Nationals and Astros, which drew 23.19 million.
In the Nielsen ratings, the sixth game ranked 4th, the fourth game ranked seventh, Game 5 was eighth, and the third game landed in 13th position.
International Audience Numbers
In Canada, the game recorded 11.6 million watchers on the Sportsnet network and the French-language TVA Sports channel. This was the highest-rated English program in Canada since the 2010 edition Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the deciding game started at 9 PM in the local time zone, it attracted 12 million. This followed last Friday’s sixth game – where World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto gave up one run in six frames – drew 13.1M viewers, making it the highest-rated Fall Classic matchup on a sole broadcaster in the country.
Overall Totals and Patterns
The full seven-game World Series recorded 15.71 million audience members on the Fox network, a two percent increase from the previous year’s Dodgers versus Yankees matchup. This marks the first time after 2015 and 2016 that the Fall Classic has recorded audience growth for two straight seasons.
Including the opening game telecast on the Univision network, the total US viewership reached over 16 million. The total World Series viewership in Japan was 9.7 million and 8.1 million in the Canadian market.
The full playoffs on Fox and its sister channels recorded 8.09M viewers, an 8% rise compared to last year and Fox’s best postseason ratings after 2017.
MLB announced that the Fall Classic was televised in over 200 nations and regions by forty-four media partners in sixteen different tongues.
