The exciting extra-inning matchup that saw the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Blue Jays by one run averaged a combined over 50 million spectators in the United States, Canada, and Japanese markets. MLB stated this marks the most-watched World Series finale after the 1991 showdown between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves.
Television Ratings Details
The Saturday memorable game secured 27.33M audience members on Fox Sports channels, Fox Deportes and Fox’s streaming platforms. According to ratings data, it was the second most-watched program of the previous week.
It also stands as the top-rated Fall Classic matchup after the 2017 Game 7 between the Dodgers and Astros, which drew 29.07 million. This marks a 16% improvement compared to the previous finale featuring the Nationals and Houston Astros, which attracted 23.19M.
In the weekly rankings, Game 6 placed 4th, the fourth game ranked seventh, Game 5 was eighth, and the third game finished in 13th position.
International Audience Figures
In Canada, the climactic game recorded over 11 million viewers on Sportsnet and the French TVA Sports channel. This was the highest-rated English-language broadcast in Canada after the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.
In Japan, where the deciding game began at 9 PM in the local time zone, it drew 12 million. This came after the previous Friday’s sixth game – where World Series MVP Yamamoto allowed one run in six innings – recorded 13.1M spectators, making it the most-watched World Series matchup on a single network in Japan.
Series Totals and Trends
The entire seven-match World Series drew 15.71M audience members on Fox, a 2% rise from last year’s Dodgers versus Yankees matchup. This represents the initial instance since 2015 and 2016 that the Fall Classic has recorded audience increases for two straight years.
Counting the opening game telecast on Univision, the complete US average reached over 16 million. The total Fall Classic average in Japan was 9.7 million and 8.1 million in Canada.
The complete MLB Postseason on Fox and its sister channels drew 8.09M watchers, an eight percent rise over the previous year and the network’s best playoff performance after 2017.
MLB reported that the World Series was televised in 203 nations and regions by 44 broadcasting partners in 16 different tongues.
