It wasn’t just Germany that won the World Cup. So did broadcasters, putting record ratings in the net, so to speak. For ESPN’s English-language audio broadcasts, the biggest draw wasn’t the finale, instead it was the U.S.-Germany matchup that brought a record-setting streaming audience.
The game drew an average 172,790 listeners per quarter hour. That includes an average of 24,910 listeners who tuned in through one of ESPN Radio’s owned-and-operated stations.
The sports network says it had more audio streaming listeners during weekday games, when presumably more people were accessing the play-by-play from their workplaces. The webcasts drew an average 31,274 listeners per quarter hour Monday to Friday, compared to the typical 23,503 listeners during the 64 games overall.
Not surprisingly, the largest weekend audio streaming audience was for the championship game with Germany’s 1-0 extra time victory over Argentina. It had 26,533 listeners.
Streaming radio aggregator TuneIn says nearly half (49%) of the 10.5 million people it estimates listened to the World Cup were in the U.S. with many tuning to ESPN Radio’s coverage, reports Inside Radio.