Women’s World Cup Final Smashes TV Records in US and Japan
July 8, 2015
Fox Sports’ investment in covering the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup paid off with huge rewards as it was announced that the USA’s 5-2 victory over Japan in the final was the most watched football match in USA history.
Around 25.4 million people tuned in to watch Jill Ellis’s side claim a record third world title for the USA in Vancouver’s BC Place.
Sunday’s figure comfortably surpasses the 18.2 million who watched USA v Portugal in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
The previous final, also played between USA and Japan in Germany in 2011, was watched by 13.5 million in comparison.
FIFA also pointed out that the average audience for the showpiece “exceeded every game of the NBA Finals, the 2014- 15 broadcast season average of every show in primetime, including Sunday Night Football, and the primetime average of the Sochi Olympic Winter Games.”
The numbers are vindication for Fox Sports who put a huge effort into their coverage of the tournament, including setting up a live set at Vancouver’s Jack Poole Plaza which had a big screen for fans to watch the USA games on.
The World Cup winning stars also starred on the show in downtown Vancouver the morning after their dominant triumph.
Meanwhile, despite the match being shown at 7.45am on Monday morning in Japan figures from Fuji TV show an average audience of 11.6 million people tuned in for the match, surpassing by more than 18% the figure for the 2011 final (9.8 million).
Although the local organising committee fell short of their goal of getting 1.5 million spectators to the event, welcoming instead 1.35m, the TV numbers show that the growth for women’s football being broadcast around the world has huge potential after this year’s landmark event.
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