Excluding Team USA, Italy was the top draw for the World Cup on ESPN during the first full week of the event (June 14-20).
Last Saturday’s Italy/New Zealand World Cup match drew a 2.3 U.S. rating and 3.449 million viewers on ESPN during the 10 AM-12 PM match window, ranking as the most-viewed non-USA World Cup match on ESPN during the first week.
Six days earlier, Paraguay/Italy drew a 2.0 and 3.084 million viewers on ESPN, the second-largest audience of the week.
Including pre-match coverage, Italy/New Zealand drew 3.106 million viewers on ESPN and 2.408 million on Univision — equaling a combined audience of approximately 5.5 million viewers.
Meanwhile, Paraguay/Italy drew 2.804 million on ESPN and 2.239 million on Univision, equaling a combined audience of approximately 5.0 million.
The top match on ESPN2 was England/Algeria on June 18, which drew a 1.7 and 2.470 million viewers for the 2:30-4:30 PM match window.
Including pre-match coverage, England/Algeria drew 2.214 million viewers on ESPN2 and 1.752 million on Univision, equaling a combined audience of just under 4.0 million viewers.
Viewership For World Cup Matches on ESPN/ABC and Univision During First Full Week (June 14-20)
| Date | Match | Pre-match included | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net | Viewers | Net | Viewers | ||
| Mon., 6/14/10 | Netherlands 2 | ESPN |
1,187
|
Univ. |
—
|
| Denmark 0 | |||||
| Japan 1 | ESPN |
1,621
|
Univ. |
1,568
|
|
| Cameroon 0 | |||||
| Italy 1 | ESPN |
2,804
|
Univ. |
2,239
|
|
| Paraguay 1 | |||||
| Tue., 6/15/10 | New Zealand 1 | ESPN |
1,021
|
Univ. |
—
|
| Slovakia 1 | |||||
| Ivory Coast 0 | ESPN |
1,924
|
Univ. |
1,843
|
|
| Portugal 0 | |||||
| Brazil 2 | ESPN |
2,753
|
Univ. |
2,960
|
|
| North Korea 1 | |||||
| Wed., 6/16/10 | Chile 1 | ESPN |
1,091
|
Univ. |
1,420
|
| Honduras 0 | |||||
| Switzerland 1 | ESPN |
2,078
|
Univ. |
2,090
|
|
| Spain 0 | |||||
| Uruguay 3 | ESPN |
2,093
|
Univ. |
2,379
|
|
| South Africa 0 | |||||
| Thu., 6/17/10 | Argentina 4 | ESPN |
1,555
|
Univ. |
—
|
| South Korea 1 | |||||
| Greece 2 | ESPN |
1,668
|
Univ. |
1,684
|
|
| Nigeria 1 | |||||
| Mexico 2 | ESPN2 |
1,969
|
Univ. |
5,499
|
|
| France 0 | |||||
| Fri., 6/18/10 | Serbia 1 | ESPN |
1,573
|
Univ. |
—
|
| Germany 0 | |||||
| Slovenia 2 | ESPN |
4,682
|
Univ. |
2,125
|
|
| United States 2 | |||||
| England 0 | ESPN |
2,214
|
Univ. |
1,752
|
|
| Algeria 0 | |||||
| Sat., 6/19/10 | Netherlands 1 | ESPN |
1,519
|
Univ. |
—
|
| Japan 0 | |||||
| Ghana 1 | ESPN |
2,776
|
Univ. |
1,868
|
|
| Australia 1 | |||||
| Denmark 2 | ABC |
3,229
|
Univ. |
2,107
|
|
| Cameroon 1 | |||||
| Sun., 6/20/10 | Paraguay 2 | ESPN |
1,383
|
Univ. |
—
|
| Slovakia 0 | |||||
| Italy 1 | ESPN |
3,106
|
Univ. |
2,408
|
|
| New Zealand 1 | |||||
| Brazil 3 | ABC |
4,048
|
Univ. |
3,689
|
|
| Ivory Coast 1 | |||||
(Sports Business Daily; TV By The Numbers 1, 2)
