KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City burnished its credentials as the “Soccer Capital of America,” posting the top rating among all U.S. markets for the U.S. Men’s National Team’s scoreless draw Friday against England.
It’s a self-proclaimed title, but one that seems even more deserved after the market’s showing for the most-watched English-language soccer broadcast in the country’s history.
USMNT-England drew a record 15.38 million average audience for the English-language broadcast, peaking late in the match with nearly 19.65 million viewers, according to Fox Sports PR.
Kansas City, which once again has had its watch parties at Power and Light prominently featured on World Cup broadcasts, boasted the top rating (8.5) among all U.S. cities.
Hartford, Connecticut, checked in second (8.3/27) followed by Boston (8.0/25), Dallas (8.0/28) and Washington D.C. (7.9/28). Kansas City posted a 26 share.
The U.S. audience for the English-language broadcast was more than the 15.1 million people who tuned in for the broadcast on British television.
Viewership for the USMNT-England match set a new benchmark for an English-language men’s soccer broadcast in the U.S., according to The Associated Press.
The previous record for an English-language soccer broadcast in the U.S. was 14.51 million for Brazil’s win against Italy in the 1994 FIFA World Cup, which is the last time the event took place on U.S. soil.
Kansas City will be among the host cities when the World Cup returns to North America in 2026.
Overall, nearly 20 million people in the U.S. tuned to the English- and Spanish-language broadcasts combined, making it the third-most watched men’s soccer match ever in U.S. television history and the most-watched non-FIFA World Cup final.
Only the 2014 World Cup final between Germany and Argentina (22.67 million) and the 2010 World Cup final between Spain and the Netherlands (21.36 million) have drawn larger U.S. TV audiences for a men’s soccer match, the AP reported.
The U.S. Women’s National Team’s 2015 World Cup final against Japan, which drew 25.4 million viewers, remains the largest audience for any soccer match in U.S. history.
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