US win draws best men’s or women’s World Cup semi audience
Jul 1, 2015, 2:36 PM
United States' Carli Lloyd (10) celebrates with teammates Ali Krieger (11) and Morgan Brian after scoring on a penalty kick against Germany during the second half of a semifinal in the Women's World Cup soccer tournament, Tuesday, June 30, 2015, in Montreal, Canada. (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press via AP)
(Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press via AP)
NEW YORK (AP) — The United States’ win over Germany is the most-watched men’s or women’s World Cup semifinal ever on American television.
The 2-0 victory by the second-ranked U.S. over the No. 1 Germans on Tuesday night averaged 8.4 million viewers on Fox. The network said Wednesday the previous high was 5.9 million for the 2006 men’s semifinal between Germany and Italy.
The audience was up 47 percent from the 5.7 million for the Americans’ quarterfinal against China on Friday night. And it was more than double the 3.4 million for the Americans’ semifinal in 2011, which was played during the day in the U.S. with the tournament in Germany.
Sunday’s final is also in prime time, giving it a chance to surpass the record of nearly 18 million viewers for the 1999 Women’s World Cup final that was played in the U.S.
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