Fall Classic Final Game Draws Over 50 Million Audience Members Across the US, Canada and Japan Regions.

The thrilling extra-inning contest where the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Blue Jays by one run attracted a aggregate over 50 million spectators across the US, Canada, and Japan markets. MLB announced this marks the highest-rated World Series finale since the 1991 edition contest between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves.

Broadcast Viewership Breakdown

Last Saturday’s epic contest drew 27.33M audience members on Fox channels, Fox Deportes and Fox’s streaming platforms. Per Nielsen, it was the second highest-rated program of the previous week.

It also stands as the top-rated World Series game after the 2017 edition final game involving the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, which drew over 29 million. This marks a sixteen percent increase compared to the previous finale featuring the Washington Nationals and Astros, which drew 23.19M.

In the Nielsen ratings, Game 6 ranked fourth, Game 4 ranked 7th, Game 5 came in eighth, and the third game landed in thirteenth place.

Global Audience Numbers

In the Canadian market, the climactic game recorded 11.6M viewers on the Sportsnet network and the French-language TVA Sports. This was the highest-rated English-language broadcast in the country after the 2010 Winter Olympics.

In Japan, where the final contest started at 9 p.m. in the local time zone, it drew 12 million. This came after last Friday’s sixth game – in which Fall Classic Most Valuable Player Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowed a single run in six innings – recorded over 13 million viewers, making it the most-watched World Series game on a sole broadcaster in the country.

Series Averages and Trends

The full seven-game series averaged 15.71M viewers on the Fox network, a 2% rise from the previous year’s Dodgers-Yankees matchup. This represents the first time after 2015 and ‘16 that the World Series has seen viewership growth for two consecutive years.

Counting the opening game broadcast on Univision, the total US average was 16.1M. The total World Series viewership in Japan was 9.7 million and 8.1 million in the Canadian market.

The complete MLB Postseason on Fox and its sister channels recorded 8.09 million watchers, an 8% increase over last year and Fox’s best playoff ratings after the 2017 season.

Major League Baseball announced that the Fall Classic was broadcast in over 200 countries and territories by 44 media partners in 16 different languages.