There was a time when soccer was an afterthought in the United States. Times have definitely changed.
Via Matt Clapp of Awful Announcing, the opening match at SoFi Stadium for the U.S. men’s national team in the 2026 World Cup attracted 24.886 million viewers on Friday night.
The number comes from the audience of 15.986 million who watched the 4-1 victory over Paraguay on Fox, along with 8.9 watching the Spanish language telecast on Telemundo, Peacock, and Telemundo streaming platforms.
In contrast, the first four games of the NBA Finals averaged 19.6 million viewers. The 2025 World Series averaged 15.863 million. Through the first four games of the Stanley Cup Final, the audience averaged 5.0 million.
The World Cup audience came from only the first U.S. match. As the tournament unfolds, there could be even bigger numbers — especially if the U.S. reaches the knockout stage.
The U.S. squad returns to action on Friday at 3:00 p.m. ET against Australia, at Lumen Field in Seattle.