MASSIVE World Cup Ratings, Messi’s Star Power, Rise Of Soccer Culture In America

Colin is joined by Mike Mulvihill, President of Insights and Analytics for FOX Sports.

They start with FOX’s process for predicting the TV numbers for the World Cup to advertisers,  and Mike explains that the viewership is similar to two full NFL regular seasons and will reach around 150 million viewers (3:30). He also discusses the breakdown between casual and die-hard soccer fans (5:30).

They discuss the surprisingly high ratings for some of the lesser known teams (9:30), and what the ceiling for viewership could look like for the USMNT and top flight teams in the later stages of the tournament (12:15). 

They talk about the controversial  implementation of the hydration breaks and the considerations behind making the change, and the network seeing no drop off in audience after the breaks. (17:30)

They discuss the impact of Messi and Ronaldo’s star power (25:30),  the viewership trends between FOX and Telemundo (28:00), and the live event communal experience of World Cup watching (29:30). They dive into the rise of soccer culture in the United States in recent years and the impact of stadium environment on viewership (30:45). 

Finally, Colin also argues the World Cup transcends everything else in sports and the unifying nature of fans all over the world enjoying a shared experience (40:00). 

All lines provided by @hardrockbet

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