The exciting 11-inning matchup where the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Toronto Blue Jays by one run averaged a aggregate over 50 million spectators in the United States, Canada, and Japan territories. MLB stated this marks the highest-rated World Series Game 7 after the 1991 contest between the Twins and Braves.
Broadcast Viewership Details
The Saturday epic game averaged 27.33M viewers on Fox channels, Fox Deportes and their digital services. Per Nielsen, it was the second highest-rated program of the previous week.
It also is the most-watched Fall Classic matchup after the 2017 Game 7 involving the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, which drew 29.07 million. This marks a sixteen percent improvement compared to the last finale featuring the Nationals and Astros, which drew 23.19 million viewers.
In the Nielsen ratings, the sixth game placed fourth, Game 4 ranked seventh, Game 5 came in 8th, and the third game finished in 13th place.
Global Audience Figures
In the Canadian market, the climactic game drew 11.6 million viewers on the Sportsnet network and the French-language TVA Sports. This made it the highest-rated English program in Canada after the 2010 edition Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the final game started at 9 PM in the local time zone, it attracted 12 million viewers. This came after the previous Friday’s Game 6 – in which World Series Most Valuable Player Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowed a single run in six innings – drew 13.1 million viewers, making it the most-watched World Series game on a sole broadcaster in the country.
Series Averages and Patterns
The full seven-game World Series averaged 15.71M viewers on the Fox network, a 2% rise from last year’s Dodgers versus Yankees series. This marks the first time after 2015 and 2016 that the World Series has recorded audience increases for two straight years.
Counting the opening game telecast on Univision, the total American viewership reached over 16 million. The total Fall Classic viewership in the Japanese market was 9.7 million and 8.1M in Canada.
The complete MLB Postseason on Fox, FS1 and FS2 drew over 8 million watchers, an 8% rise over last year and the network’s best playoff ratings after the 2017 season.
Major League Baseball announced that the World Series was broadcast in 203 nations and regions by 44 broadcasting partners in sixteen different languages.
