World Cup Ratings: USA Loss to Germany Brings 10.8 Million Viewers to ESPN
AP Photo/Hassan Ammar
World Cup soccer
Much to Ann Coulter's chagrin, World Cup ratings are still on fire.
Though it doesn't quite compare to Sunday's record-breaking game against Portugal, Team USA's third appearance at the 2014 FIFA World Cup saw viewership surge again during Thursday's early match with Germany averaging 10.8 million viewers.
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The 1-0 loss came at quite an early hour for American audiences with the game starting at 12 p.m. ET/ 9 a.m. PT one reason why it didn't equal the audience of the previous game. An ideal Sunday evening kickoff time brought 18.2 million viewers to the cable network for USA-Portugal, making it the most watched soccer game in U.S. television history.
Thursday's game also scored an overnight rating of a 6.7, making it the third-highest-rated men's World Cup game on record. And Team USA's not-altogether-expected endurance in the tournament is only good news for ratings moving forward.
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The game was a boon to streaming viewership as well, with many fans tuning in from work. The WatchESPN app peaked with 1.7 million viewers, a platform record, while Univision's stream reached 750,000.
ESPN will next telecast America's Round of 16 match against Belgium. The Tuesday, July 1, game kicks off at 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT, a much more advantageous start time, ratingswise.
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World Cup Ratings: USA Loss to Germany Brings 10.8 Million Viewers to ESPN