The United States’ opening match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup—a 4-1 win over Paraguay at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles—draws a record audience on U.S. English-language broadcasts, according to ratings cited by multiple outlets. Fox Sports reports the game averages 15.986 million viewers across Fox and its streaming and simulcast channels, including Fox One and Tubi. The figure is described as the most-watched men’s World Cup telecast in English-language U.S. history and also the most-watched USMNT World Cup English-language telecast in that market.
The Athletic and other sources note the total audience may be higher when considering additional viewing through Telemundo, the World Cup Spanish-language broadcaster in the U.S., which is not included in the English-language ratings. Variety and Yahoo Sports also report separate Spanish-language performance, noting Mexico vs. South Africa is the biggest Spanish-language audience in that set of ratings. Overall, sources agree the Paraguay match is a major viewership event for Fox’s World Cup coverage and for the U.S. team’s World Cup opening game.
