The thrilling 11-inning clash that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Blue Jays 5-4 attracted a total 51 million spectators across the US, Canada, and Japan markets. MLB reported this is the highest-rated World Series finale after the 1991 showdown between the Twins and Braves.
Television Viewership Breakdown
Last Saturday’s memorable contest averaged over 27 million audience members on Fox Sports networks, its Spanish-language channel and their digital services. Per ratings data, it was the second highest-rated program of the week.
It additionally stands as the most-watched Fall Classic matchup after the 2017 edition Game 7 involving the Dodgers and Astros, which averaged over 29 million. This marks a 16% improvement compared to the last finale featuring the Nationals and Astros, which attracted 23.19 million.
In the Nielsen ratings, Game 6 ranked fourth, Game 4 was seventh, the fifth game was eighth, and Game 3 landed in thirteenth place.
International Audience Figures
In the Canadian market, the game averaged over 11 million viewers on Sportsnet and the French-language TVA Sports. This was the most-watched English-language program in the country after the 2010 Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the final game started at 9 PM in the local time zone, it averaged 12 million viewers. This followed last Friday’s sixth game – in which Fall Classic Most Valuable Player Yoshinobu Yamamoto gave up one run in six innings – drew 13.1M viewers, making it the most-watched Fall Classic game on a sole broadcaster in the country.
Overall Totals and Trends
The entire seven-match World Series drew 15.71 million audience members on the Fox network, a two percent increase from the previous year’s Dodgers versus Yankees series. This marks the first time after 2015 and ‘16 that the Fall Classic has seen audience increases for two straight years.
Counting the opening game telecast on Univision, the total American viewership was 16.1M. The total Fall Classic viewership in Japan was 9.7M and 8.1 million in the Canadian market.
The full MLB Postseason on Fox, FS1 and FS2 drew 8.09 million watchers, an 8% increase over the previous year and Fox’s strongest playoff ratings after the 2017 season.
MLB reported that the World Series was televised in over 200 countries and territories by 44 media partners in sixteen various tongues.
