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US-Belgium at World Cup is most-watched soccer telecast in US history at 30M viewers, Fox says

Jul 7, 2026, 11:52 AM

Belgium fans react after the team scored during the World Cup round of 16 soccer match between the ...

Belgium fans react after the team scored during the World Cup round of 16 soccer match between the United States and Belgium, at a watch party at the Rockefeller Center fan village, Monday, July 6, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Credit: AP Photo/Adam Gray

(AP Photo/Adam Gray)

The U.S. game against Belgium in the round of 16 at the World Cup set another record as the most-watched soccer telecast in U.S. history, Fox said after preliminary ratings came out Tuesday.

Fox said 30 million people watched the game, a 4-1 victory for Belgium on Monday in Seattle to move into the quarterfinals and eliminate the last of the tournament’s three co-hosts. Fox said audience peaked at more than 36.8 million people between 9:15 and 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

That topped the previous mark, the U.S.-Bosnia-Herzegovina game last week that Fox said was watched by 26.4 million.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

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US-Belgium at World Cup is most-watched soccer telecast in US history at 30M viewers, Fox says