Spain’s World Cup win draws 62.8 million U.S. viewers
Fox and Telemundo set soccer viewing marks as Spain’s final victory over Argentina delivered record U.S. audiences.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
2 min read
Spain’s World Cup Final victory over Argentina pulled in 62.8 million viewers in the United States across Fox and Telemundo, giving both broadcasters record-setting finishes to the tournament.
Fox averaged 38.9 million viewers for Sunday’s final, while NBCUniversal’s Spanish-language network Telemundo added 23.9 million viewers across linear television and Peacock, according to figures reported by the broadcasters.
The match ended with Spain on top after Ferran Torres scored the winner in extra time. Nielsen data cited by Fox said the English-language broadcast became the most-watched soccer telecast in U.S. television history and the most-watched World Cup Final on record in the country.
Fox said viewing for the final reached its highest point between 5:45 p.m. and 6 p.m. ET, when 51.7 million people were watching as Torres delivered the decisive goal.
The final marked a sharp jump from the 2022 World Cup Final between Argentina and France, which drew 12.8 million viewers in the U.S. That game aired earlier in the day because the tournament was staged in Qatar.
The 2026 tournament was hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, and the schedule helped generate several audience highs for broadcasters during the month-long run.
Fox said its 38.9 million-viewer average for the final included some pre-match coverage. The network also said the 120-minute match itself averaged 42.5 million viewers.
Before the final, the prior U.S. soccer telecast record cited during this tournament came from the U.S. men’s team’s last-16 loss to Belgium, which was also reported at 38.9 million viewers.
Telemundo also posted its own milestone tournament. The network said the World Cup became the most-watched edition in Spanish-language media history, averaging 6.3 million viewers across 104 matches. That was up from 2.6 million viewers for the 2022 tournament.
The Spanish-language audience for the final also set a record. Telemundo and Peacock’s 23.9 million viewers made Spain’s win over Argentina the most-watched soccer match in Spanish-language media history, according to the network.
That total topped the previous Spanish-language record from this same World Cup, when 23.2 million viewers watched England beat Mexico at the Azteca Stadium in the round of 16.
The final also featured Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez being sent off, according to the match account. Spain’s win capped a tournament that delivered big audiences on both English- and Spanish-language platforms in the U.S.
This story draws on original reporting from Deadline.