The nail-biting extra-inning clash that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Toronto Blue Jays by one run averaged a aggregate 51 million watchers across the US, Canada, and Japanese markets. MLB stated this is the highest-rated Fall Classic Game 7 since the 1991 showdown between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves.
Broadcast Viewership Breakdown
Last Saturday’s epic game secured 27.33 million audience members on Fox Sports channels, its Spanish-language channel and their digital services. According to ratings data, it was the second most-watched program of the week.
It also stands as the most-watched World Series matchup since the 2017 Game 7 between the Dodgers and Astros, which drew over 29 million. This marks a 16% increase compared to the last Game 7 featuring the Nationals and Astros, which attracted 23.19 million.
In the weekly rankings, the sixth game ranked fourth, Game 4 was seventh, Game 5 was eighth, and Game 3 landed in 13th position.
International Audience Numbers
In Canada, the climactic game drew 11.6 million watchers on the Sportsnet network and the French TVA Sports channel. This made it the most-watched English program in Canada since the 2010 edition Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the deciding contest started at 9 PM local time, it averaged 12M. This came after last Friday’s sixth game – in which World Series Most Valuable Player Yamamoto gave up one run in six innings – recorded 13.1 million viewers, making it the most-watched Fall Classic game on a sole broadcaster in the country.
Series Averages and Patterns
The entire seven-game World Series drew 15.71M audience members on Fox, a 2% rise from the previous year’s Dodgers versus Yankees series. This represents the first time since 2015 and 2016 that the Fall Classic has seen viewership increases for two straight seasons.
Including the opening game telecast on Univision, the total American viewership was 16.1 million. The overall Fall Classic average in the Japanese market was 9.7 million and 8.1M in Canada.
The full playoffs on Fox and its sister channels averaged 8.09 million viewers, an eight percent rise over last year and the network’s strongest playoff ratings since the 2017 season.
MLB stated that the World Series was televised in over 200 countries and territories by 44 media partners in sixteen various languages.
