Women's World Cup sets record for largest TV viewership in U.S. history

Dec 20 2017, 12:07 am

The FIFA final match between the U.S. and Japan became the most watched soccer match in U.S. history, according to Nielsen ratings data.

The Women’s World Cup final in Vancouver resulting in a 5-2 win by the U.S. over Japan had an average of 25.4 million viewers, and peaked at 30.9 million at 8:30-8:45 p.m.

These numbers beat the Men’s World Cup match between Portugal and the U.S. by nearly 7.2 million viewers. The match also beat the audience for the 2011 Women’s World Cup Final — which also featured the U.S. vs. Japan — by 13.5 million.

The match also exceeded the average audience for games in NBA Finals and Sunday Night Football.

The FIFA Fan Zone in Vancouver attracted a total of 130,000 visitors over the course of 13 days, making it the most popular FIFA Fan Zone within the six across the country. A total of 42 per cent of visitors came from outside Canada.

However, key figures of this year’s world cup show that the average attendance at the games was the lowest since the 2013 Women’s World Cup.

The total attendance was at 1,353,506, while the average attendance was 26,029. Numbers compiled by SoccerAmerica show that the average attendance was the lowest since 2003.

Average Attendance:
37,319 (1999)
36,155 (2007)
26,430 (2011)
26,029 (2015)
20,525 (2003)
19,615 (1991)
4,316 (1995)

The biggest attendance was the quarter-finals in Vancouver between Canada and England, which saw the elimination of Canada from the tournament.

DH Vancouver StaffDH Vancouver Staff

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