The thrilling extra-inning matchup that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers overcome the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 averaged a total 51M spectators in the US, Canadian, and Japan territories. MLB reported this is the most-watched World Series finale after the 1991 edition contest between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves.
Television Viewership Breakdown
Last Saturday’s memorable game secured 27.33M audience members on Fox networks, its Spanish-language channel and their streaming platforms. Per ratings data, it was the second most-watched program of the previous week.
It also stands as the top-rated Fall Classic matchup since the 2017 edition final game between the Dodgers and Houston Astros, which averaged over 29 million. This marks a 16% increase over the last Game 7 between the Washington Nationals and Houston Astros, which attracted 23.19M.
In the Nielsen ratings, Game 6 ranked fourth, Game 4 ranked seventh, Game 5 was eighth, and the third game landed in thirteenth position.
International Viewership Figures
In the Canadian market, the climactic game drew 11.6 million watchers on Sportsnet and the French TVA Sports channel. This made it the highest-rated English-language broadcast in the country since the 2010 edition Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In Japan, where the deciding game began at 9 PM local time, it attracted 12 million viewers. This followed last Friday’s sixth game – where Fall Classic Most Valuable Player Yamamoto gave up a single run in six frames – drew 13.1M viewers, making it the most-watched World Series matchup on a single network in the country.
Series Averages and Trends
The entire seven-match series drew 15.71 million audience members on Fox, a two percent increase from last year’s Dodgers versus Yankees series. This represents the first time after 2015 and 2016 that the Fall Classic has seen audience increases for two straight seasons.
Including the opening game broadcast on Univision, the complete American viewership reached 16.1 million. The total World Series average in the Japanese market was 9.7 million and 8.1 million in the Canadian market.
The complete MLB Postseason on Fox, FS1 and FS2 recorded 8.09 million watchers, an eight percent rise compared to last year and Fox’s strongest postseason ratings after 2017.
Major League Baseball stated that the Fall Classic was televised in 203 countries and territories by forty-four broadcasting partners in sixteen different languages.
