The 2026 FIFA World Cup final has become the most-watched soccer broadcast in United States history, attracting more than 62.8 million viewers across English and Spanish-language television platforms.
The historic audience figure highlights the rapid rise of football’s popularity in the U.S. and is expected to strengthen the value of broadcasting rights ahead of future FIFA tournaments.
The championship match, played on Sunday, saw Spain defeat defending champions Argentina 1-0 after extra time to lift the World Cup trophy. According to broadcaster Telemundo, it also became the most-watched soccer match ever aired on Spanish-language television in the United States.
Fox, which held the exclusive English-language television rights, drew nearly 39 million viewers, representing a 132% increase compared with its audience for the 2022 FIFA World Cup final.
Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language broadcaster, attracted almost 24 million viewers, marking a 166% rise from the previous World Cup final held in 2022.
Streaming services also played a major role in expanding the tournament’s audience.
Research firm Antenna reported that June became the strongest month ever for subscriber growth on Fox One, with the streaming platform gaining an estimated 2.8 million new subscribers. That total surpassed its previous monthly record by more than two-and-a-half times, while about 93% of the new subscribers were first-time customers.
Telemundo’s streaming partner, Peacock, also experienced significant growth, adding an estimated 3.75 million U.S. subscribers during June.
Telemundo said streaming accounted for nearly half of its World Cup audience, a notable increase from around 30% during the 2022 tournament. The broadcaster also benefited from attracting viewers beyond Spanish-speaking audiences, with many fans praising its lively commentary, uninterrupted coverage during hydration breaks and Peacock’s lower subscription cost compared with Fox One.
Several factors contributed to the record-breaking television numbers, including the United States hosting the competition, the strong performances of the U.S. men’s national team and wider access through streaming platforms.
The American team’s opening match against Paraguay on June 12 became the most-watched English-language FIFA Men’s World Cup broadcast in U.S. history, averaging 18 million viewers, according to Fox.
The team’s July 1 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina later set a new record with 26.4 million viewers on Fox before being surpassed days later.
The July 6 defeat to Belgium attracted 37.2 million viewers on Fox and an additional 12.9 million viewers on Telemundo, bringing the combined audience to more than 50 million. Another highly watched fixture, Mexico’s clash with England on July 5, recorded a combined audience of 46.7 million viewers across both broadcasters.
The FIFA World Cup has consistently ranked among the world’s biggest television events. FIFA is yet to release the global audience figures for the 2026 final. The previous worldwide record remains the 2022 World Cup final between Argentina and France, which FIFA said reached 1.42 billion viewers globally.
The latest figures also reinforce the importance of live sports for broadcasters and streaming platforms, as major sporting events continue to generate huge advertising revenues while driving new subscriptions.
In a bid to broaden the tournament’s appeal, FIFA introduced its first-ever halftime show during a World Cup final, adopting an entertainment format more familiar to American audiences. Following the tournament’s commercial success, the world football governing body is expected to begin the bidding process for media rights to the 2030 FIFA World Cup, with broadcasters likely to compete aggressively for the valuable rights.
