Washington, D.C. July 19, 2011 — Sunday’s Women's World Cup final between the United States and Japan was the most-watched and highest-rated soccer telecast on an ESPN network.
Japan wins!
Based on early numbers from the Nielsen Company, the exciting final was seen by an average 13.458 million viewers, based on a 7.4 U.S. household rating (8.58 million household impressions).
The USA-Japan match, in which Japan won penalty kicks after a 2-2 tie, bests the USA-Algeria men’s match (June 23, 2010) from last summer’s FIFA World Cup, which set the previous ESPN records for both ratings and viewership – 6.16 million viewers, based on a 4.0 household U.S. rating (4.58 million households).
The match also ranks as the sixth most-viewed soccer telecast ever in the United States.
Baltimore was the top market for the final, delivering a 12.3 rating. Rounding out the top five were: San Diego (11.8), West Palm Beach (11.7), Washington, D.C. (11.5), and Norfolk, Va. (11.1).
Most-Viewed Soccer Events in USA
Year Match Event Network Viewership
1999 USA-China Women's World Cup ABC 17,975,000
2010 Spain-Netherlands World Cup ABC 15,905,000
2010 USA-Ghana World Cup ABC 15,193,000
1994 Brazil-Italy World Cup ABC 14,510,000
1994 USA-Brazil World Cup ABC 13,694,000
2011 USA-Japan Women's World Cup ESPN 13,458,000
2006 Italy-France World Cup ABC 11,961,000
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