American football fans have been spoilt for choice with the simultaneous airing of the Copa America and Euro 2024 tournaments. Despite the United States hosting the Copa America for a second time, it appears that more fans are tuning into Euro 2024. This article delves into this trend, exploring viewership statistics and potential reasons behind this shift.
FOX's Summer of Soccer has been a resounding success, with almost every game from both tournaments being aired. However, there is a clear disparity in viewership between the two competitions. According to FOX’s reports on its viewership for these tournaments, Euro 2024 is averaging over double the viewers on FOX compared to Copa America on Fox Sports 1.
In particular, during last week's quarterfinals stage, FOX’s coverage of Euros averaged an impressive 3.569 million viewers per game - with France-Portugal leading at over 4 million views and peaking at over 5.7 million during their penalty shootout.
Overall good show of Copa America matches
On the other hand, despite being hosted by US soil itself and having strong audiences such as Uruguay vs Brazil game which pulled in over two million people - The average quarterfinal viewership for Copa America was significantly lower at around just under half that number (1.668 million).
One factor contributing to this disparity could be attributed to channel reach; FOX has a significantly larger reach than Fox Sports 1 due to its status as a broadcast channel accessible via antenna or TV subscription.
This means that there is simply a larger pool from which to draw American audiences for Euro 2024 matches compared to those aired on Fox Sports 1 like those from Copa America tournament.
Battle of star names played big role
Another key factor influencing these numbers could be star power; while both tournaments boast world-class talent, it is more common in Europe. The European Championship has the likes of Kylian Mbappe from France, Cristiano Ronaldo from Portugal and a host of Premier League stars such as Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham from England. Copa America features Lionel Messi, Darwin Núñez, Luis Diaz and Alphonso Davies. While these are big names in their own right - with Messi arguably being one of the biggest draws in football - they don't seem to be pulling American audiences as effectively as their European counterparts.
The Portugal-France game was a prime example of how star power can pull viewers; having both Mbappe and Ronaldo on hand drew millions to FOX's coverage. This comfortably topped even England games which traditionally draw many Americans due to connections with the Premier League.
These statistics suggest that there may be a shift occurring within American soccer viewership trends. Despite hosting Copa America for the second time, it seems that more fans are tuning into Euro 2024 - drawn by larger channel reach and perhaps also by greater star power.
