Approximately 1.1 million U.S. households watched the finals between the U.K. and Spain on Fox and Peacock last weekend, according to new numbers from Samba TV. That’s about 360,000 less than Team USA’s match against Sweden—which eliminated them from the competition—and over 3 million less than Team USA’s first match against Vietnam, which brought in 4.4M, according to Samba TV.
Two factors affected ratings this year: Team USA’s relatively early exit from the competition as well as the TV schedule from the Australian-based host, which saw many matches played during the wee hours of the morning. After 36 games, the average Women’s World Cup viewership in the U.S. was 672,000, compared to the 2019 Women’s World Cup, which averaged just under 1 million at 968,000, a 36% decline, according to Sports TV Ratings expert Robert Seidman.
Team USA’s biggest TV draw was the World Cup Final rematch with the Netherlands on July 26, which garnered just shy of 8 million viewers between Fox and Telemundo, making it the most-watched group stage game for a Women’s World Cup in U.S. history. That game was played in primetime at 9 p.m. ET.
In regards to demographics, the most interest in the tournament came from older millennial and Gen X households, Samba TV said.
