According to figures released by The Nielsen Company, the final match of the 2010 Fifa World Cup – Spain versus Netherlands on 11 July – was the most watched soccer game in America ever. It drew 24.3 million viewers on both ABC and Univision.
The previously most watched soccer game in American history was the US versus Ghana second round match, which took place on 26 June and drew 19.4 million viewers. By comparison, the USA versus England first round match attracted 17.1 million viewers.
Third highest in the US’ all time soccer viewership rankings was the Brazil versus Italy match in the 1994 Fifa World Cup, which drew 18.1 million viewers.
