USA-Japan is Most-Watched Soccer Match in U.S. History

[mvcg66b3r]

This is just amazing. Based on the trends we were seeing for the Women’s World Cup, I thought the viewership for the USA vs. Japan final would average around 15 million viewers. I was only off by ten million viewers. Sunday’s final played in Vancouver at a U.S. time zone-friendly 7 p.m. ET when families could watch together saw an NFL-like 25.4 million viewers for the match.

Fox could not have foreseen this type of viewership. Combined with a 12.9 rating, Sunday’s match which saw the U.S. avenge its 2011 loss in the Women’s World Cup Final to Japan is now the new standard for soccer viewership in America. It certainly beats the record for a women’s game which was previously the 1999 Women’s World Cup Final (just under 18 million) by 41% between the U.S. and China and outpaces the overall record which was set last year, a World Cup Group Stage match between the U.S. Men’s National Team vs. Portugal (18.2 million) by 39%.

It also beat the 2011 final (13.5 million) by a staggering 89%.

http://fangsbites.com/fox-sports/us...viewers-on-fox-smashes-us-viewing-record.html

 

[landtuna]

That game set the bar way too high for the next batch of soccer players, of either gender or age, to beat. You will NEVER see a game at their level begin with 4 goals by one team in the first 15 minutes of play. I could not believe what I was seeing. The other notable thing about that game that differed from most of the rest of the WC games was that there was a very minimum of fouling by both teams. It was played the way soccer is supposed to be played. A huge credit to both teams!

 

[umfan]

Just think if the USA Men's team ever is this competitive. Might make soccer a mainstream sport in the US.