The nail-biting 11-inning clash where the Dodgers overcome the Blue Jays by one run attracted a aggregate 51M viewers in the US, Canada, and Japan markets. MLB stated this represents the most-watched World Series finale since the 1991 edition showdown featuring the Minnesota Twins and Braves.
Television Ratings Breakdown
The Saturday epic game secured over 27 million audience members on Fox Sports networks, its Spanish-language channel and Fox’s streaming platforms. Per ratings data, it was the second highest-rated broadcast of the week.
It also is the top-rated Fall Classic matchup after the 2017 edition Game 7 involving the Dodgers and Houston Astros, which averaged 29.07 million. This represents a 16% improvement compared to the previous finale featuring the Nationals and Houston Astros, which drew 23.19 million.
In the Nielsen ratings, Game 6 ranked 4th, Game 4 ranked 7th, Game 5 was eighth, and the third game finished in 13th place.
Global Viewership Numbers
In the Canadian market, the climactic game recorded 11.6M watchers on the Sportsnet network and the French TVA Sports channel. This made it the most-watched English-language program in the country after the 2010 edition Winter Olympics.
In the Japanese market, where the deciding contest began at 9 p.m. local time, it drew 12 million viewers. This came after last Friday’s Game 6 – where World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowed one run in six frames – recorded 13.1M viewers, making it the highest-rated World Series game on a single network in Japan.
Overall Averages and Trends
The full seven-game series drew 15.71 million viewers on the Fox network, a 2% increase from last year’s Dodgers versus Yankees series. This represents the first time after 2015 and 2016 that the World Series has recorded viewership growth for two consecutive years.
Counting the opening game telecast on the Univision network, the complete US average reached 16.1M. The total World Series average in Japan was 9.7 million and 8.1 million in the Canadian market.
The complete playoffs on Fox and its sister channels averaged 8.09 million watchers, an 8% rise over the previous year and Fox’s best postseason ratings after the 2017 season.
MLB reported that the World Series was televised in 203 nations and regions by 44 broadcasting partners in sixteen different tongues.
