The exciting extended clash that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 averaged a combined 51M viewers across the United States, Canada, and Japanese markets. Major League Baseball announced this is the most-watched Fall Classic finale since the 1991 edition contest featuring the Minnesota Twins and Braves.
Television Ratings Details
The Saturday epic game drew 27.33 million viewers on Fox networks, its Spanish-language channel and Fox’s digital services. According to ratings data, it was the second highest-rated program of the week.
It also stands as the most-watched World Series game after the 2017 Game 7 between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Astros, which averaged 29.07 million. This marks a 16% increase compared to the last finale between the Nationals and Astros, which drew 23.19 million viewers.
In the Nielsen ratings, Game 6 ranked 4th, Game 4 was 7th, Game 5 was 8th, and the third game finished in thirteenth position.
Global Viewership Numbers
In Canada, the game drew 11.6 million watchers on the Sportsnet network and the French TVA Sports. This made it the most-watched English broadcast in the country after the 2010 edition Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In Japan, where the final game started at 9 PM in the local time zone, it drew 12 million viewers. This followed the previous Friday’s sixth game – in which World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowed a single run in six innings – drew over 13 million spectators, making it the most-watched World Series matchup on a sole broadcaster in the country.
Series Averages and Patterns
The entire seven-match World Series averaged 15.71 million audience members on Fox, a two percent rise from last year’s Dodgers-Yankees series. This represents the initial instance since 2015 and 2016 that the World Series has recorded audience growth for two consecutive years.
Including the Game 1 telecast on the Univision network, the total US average reached 16.1 million. The overall Fall Classic average in Japan was 9.7 million and 8.1M in Canada.
The complete playoffs on Fox, FS1 and FS2 recorded 8.09 million watchers, an 8% increase compared to the previous year and Fox’s best playoff performance after the 2017 season.
MLB reported that the World Series was televised in 203 countries and territories by forty-four broadcasting partners in sixteen different tongues.
