MIAMI, Florida – There is no question that with each year, women’s football continues to grow worldwide, and especially within the Concacaf region.
2015 was a hallmark year for Concacaf, with Canada hosting the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
In addition to being one of the most competitive and thrilling Women’s World Cup tournaments, it was wildly successful off the field as well, with $493.6 million in economic activity for Canada, which surpassed the expected total of $337 million.
Attendance-wise, Canada 2015 set the standard with a WWC record 1,353,506 fans attending matches, with an average match attendance of 26,029 and seven matches with at least 50,000 spectators, thus setting an attendance record for a FIFA competition apart from the FIFA World Cup.
The economic activity spurred by Canada 2015 resulted in a very healthy financial outlook for Canada Soccer in 2016, with a reported $2.9 million surplus under the guidance of then-Canada Soccer President Victor Montagliani, who now serves as President of Concacaf.
The television ratings for Canada 2015 were also impressive. The tournament was watched by 750 million worldwide viewers, including 20.8 million and Canada, while the Final between the United States and Japan was watched by 26.6 million viewers in the United States.
These marks set by Canada 2015 would be bested by France 2019, with 1.12 billion global viewers enjoying coverage of last summer’s Women’s World Cup, up 30% from Canada 2015, including over 260 million live viewers of the Final between the USA and Netherlands, more than doubling the amount from the 2015 Final.
The USA 2-0 win over Netherlands in the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019 final delivered 14,271,000 viewers, peaking at nearly 20 million, across FOX and streaming services, making it the most-watched football match on English-language television in the U.S. since the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup final.
Of note at France 2019 was the increase in coverage on digital platforms, with 481.5 million people tuning into France 2019 on digital platforms, a substantial increase from the 86 million digital viewers from Canada 2015.
Thanks to the smashing success of Canada 2015, France 2019 enjoyed a broader broadcasting reach to 205 worldwide territories and the result was an average live match audience of 17.27 million viewers, more than doubling the 8.39 million average of Canada 2015.
With the next WWC just three short years away, the foundation laid by Canada 2015 and carried on by France 2019 is sure to make the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup the most watched yet.
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