Roger Espinoza (15) of Sporting Kansas City and Chris Gloster (2) of NYCFC fight for the ball during a regular MLS game at Citi Field in May 2022 (photo by Lev Radin/Shutterstock).
May 4, 2026
U.S. viewers spent nearly 80 billion minutes watching soccer on television in 2025, according to a new report from Nielsen. Heading into the FIFA World Cup 2026 in the United States, Mexico and Canada, Nielsen finds that 33% of the general U.S. population expects their interest in soccer to increase over the next 18 months
Another 64% of U.S. soccer fans expect their interest in soccer to increase over the next 18 months, and 56% of current U.S. soccer fans expect their interest to increase specifically because of the upcoming World Cup.
Soccer’s distribution in the U.S. is largely driven by streaming, including Apple TV for Major League Soccer; Peacock for English Premier League (exclusive live matches) and FIFA World Cup 2026 (Spanish-language home for all 104 games); Paramount+ for UEFA Champions League, Europa League, Conference League (English exclusive), Serie A (Italy), NWSL (U.S. women’s) and USL; Prime Video for National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL); ESPN Unlimited for LaLiga (Spain), Bundesliga (Germany), FA Cup and EFL Cup; and Fox One for FIFA World Cup 2026 (English home for all matches), Liga MX and MLS (select matches).
Netflix’s soccer coverage in 2026 revolves around a global daily talk show for the FIFA World Cup, a series of exclusive original documentaries, and the launch of a new FIFA football simulation game.
“To understand where fans are watching and how they engage with the world’s most popular sport, Nielsen is sharing our new proprietary insights and capabilities around the World Cup to arm and empower our clients to thrive during this iconic moment in our sporting history,” said Seth Ladetsky, head of global sports.
Due to streaming, viewer interest in international soccer tournaments has been on the rise in the United States: In 2024 the average audience for Copa América more than doubled compared with 2021, and in 2025 both the UEFA Women’s Euro and the CONCACAF Gold Cup saw significant increases.
At 79.5%, U.S. soccer fans strongly over-index the general population (61.9%) in the use of social media for sports news and content, regardless of platform. Aligning with soccer-themed channels and working with sports creators are just some ways brands can seize upon social opportunities to engage fans during the World Cup.
Millennials edge out Gen Z as the top second-screeners. Unsurprisingly, soccer fans across generations are actively engaged on second screens while watching sports, with 86% of Millennials and 83.2% of GenZ outpacing soccer fans in general at 79.4%.
American soccer fans are also more likely than the general population to listen to radio and podcasts for sports news, and 77% report that they use those mediums specifically for soccer content.
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