The nail-biting extra-inning contest that saw the Dodgers overcome the Toronto Blue Jays by one run averaged a combined 51 million viewers in the United States, Canadian, and Japanese markets. MLB reported this represents the most-watched Fall Classic finale after the 1991 edition showdown featuring the Minnesota Twins and Braves.
Television Viewership Breakdown
The Saturday memorable contest averaged 27.33 million audience members on Fox networks, its Spanish-language channel and their digital services. According to Nielsen, it was the second highest-rated program of the week.
It also is the most-watched World Series game after the 2017 final game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, which drew 29.07M. This represents a sixteen percent increase compared to the previous Game 7 between the Washington Nationals and Houston Astros, which drew 23.19 million.
In the Nielsen ratings, the sixth game placed fourth, Game 4 ranked seventh, the fifth game was 8th, and the third game landed in 13th position.
International Viewership Numbers
In Canada, the climactic game drew 11.6 million watchers on Sportsnet and the French-language TVA Sports. This made it the most-watched English program in the country after the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the deciding game began at 9 p.m. local time, it drew 12 million. This came after last Friday’s sixth game – in which World Series Most Valuable Player Yamamoto allowed one run in six frames – recorded over 13 million viewers, making it the most-watched World Series matchup on a sole broadcaster in Japan.
Overall Totals and Trends
The entire seven-game series drew over 15.7 million viewers on the Fox network, a two percent rise from last year’s Dodgers-Yankees series. This represents the first time since 2015 and ‘16 that the World Series has seen audience growth for two straight years.
Including the Game 1 telecast on the Univision network, the complete US average was 16.1 million. The overall World Series viewership in the Japanese market was 9.7 million and 8.1 million in Canada.
The complete playoffs on Fox, FS1 and FS2 averaged 8.09 million viewers, an 8% rise over the previous year and the network’s best postseason performance after the 2017 season.
MLB reported that the World Series was televised in over 200 countries and territories by 44 broadcasting partners in sixteen different tongues.
