The World Cup Match Between The USA And Portugal Was The Most Watched In American History

Forbes – The game may have wound up a draw in the final seconds, but for ESPN , Sunday’s FIFA World Cup match between Team TISI 0% USA and Portugal was ratings hit, averaging 18,220,000 viewers based on a 9.6 HH US rating. It surpassed the previous high of 17,975,000 viewers for the 1999 Women’s World Cup final (USA vs. China) on ABC. Additional television highlights:for a World Cup match on ESPN or ESPN2. The telecast peaked from 7:30 to 8 p.m. ET with an average of 22,961,000 viewers and an 11.9 household US rating. The match, which had the US up 2-1 with under 30 seconds left in stoppage-time, saw Cristiano Ronaldo break free on the right and sent a cross pass to Silvestre Varela who put the ball in the goal, thus resulting in a 2-2 draw. The game held US audiences captive till the end besting the then highest-rated 7.0 rating for the US’s initial World Cup match against Ghana. According to Nielsen, the the broadcast also ranks as the third-highest Men’s World Cup match of any round on any ESPN network – tied for ABC’s USA vs. Ghana round of 16 match in 2010; and behind ABC’s presentations of the 1994 World Cup Final featuring Brazil vs. Italy (12.8 overnight rating), and the 1994 USA-Brazil round of 16 match (10.4 rating). How did the match rate compared to other programming for ESPN? According to The Worldwide Leader In Sports, the match is ESPN’s most-viewed program excluding NFL and college football telecasts. The following are overnight ratings for the top 10 metered markets: Washington, DC (13.3), Columbus, Ohio (12.6), New York (12.5), Boston (11.5), Hartford & New Haven (11.3), Providence (11.2), Atlanta (11.1), Baltimore (11.0), Norfolk (10.5), and Orlando (10.5). To date, the highest-rated markets on the ESPN Networks are: Washington DC (5.0), New York (4.3), San Francisco (4.1), Orlando (3.8), and Los Angeles (3.7).