World Series Game 3 Launches FOX to Third Prime Time Victory

MLB 10/25/2014

San Francisco – World Series Game 3 last night was a scoreless pitcher’s duel between starters Jeremy Guthrie of the Kansas City Royals and San Francisco Giants hurler Tim Hudson until the sixth inning, when all of the game’s five runs were scored. When it was over the Royals, bolstered by four innings of no-hit relief, topped the Giants 3-2 to take a two-games-to-one lead in the best-of-seven series. While the Royals lead the World Series, it was the World Series that led FOX to its third prime time victory this week.

Friday night’s third game of the 2014 World Series between the Royals and Giants, the first of three games to be played in San Francisco, posted a 7.2/13 household rating/share with 12.1 million viewers, according to fast nationals issued today by Nielsen. From 8:03-11:00 PM ET, FOX broadcast network averaged a 7.0/13 in primetime which projects to be the network’s best performance for a Friday night since January of 2013, and best Friday night on any network since February. FOX is projected to easily win the night in prime time among households and Adults 18-49, making the network three-for-three for the nights World Series games have been played this week. Additional details follow:

• The 2014 World Series, through 3 games, ranks as the No. 3 program on broadcast television this season, maintaining a top-10 position it has enjoyed consistently for decades.

• Game 3 was FOX’s most-watched Friday night program since Game 7 of the 2011 World Series (24.5 million).

• The rating and audience for World Series Game 3 were +18% and +15%, respectively, compared to Game 3 in 2012, the last time San Francisco appeared in the Fall Classic (6.1, 10.5 million viewers). Through 3 Games, the World Series on FOX is averaging a 7.5/13, with 12.4 million viewers, +4% over the Giants-Tigers World Series in 2012 (7.2/12, 11.7 million viewers).

• Adding FOX Deportes (see below) to FOX, the combined audience totaled 12.4 million viewers for World Series Game 3.

• Initial tune-in was a 5.2/10 with 8.4 million viewers from 8:03-8:30 PM ET, and ratings increased steadily throughout the evening peaking with an 8.5/16 with 14.4 million viewers from 11:00-11:25 PM ET as the Royals sealed the victory and Series lead.

• The story locally has remained consistently strong. Kansas City one again led all local markets, posting a 49.0/72, followed by San Francisco (26.4/50). Other highly-rated markets include Sacramento (21.3), St. Louis (15.0), Las Vegas (11.1) and Portland (10.0).

• FOX Deportes’ Spanish-language telecast of World Series Game 3 averaged 228,000 total viewers, the best for a World Series Game 3 telecast in the channel’s history, +42% for total viewers vs. last year’s Game 3 (161,000). Through three games, the 2014 World Series on FOX Deportes is averaging 260,000 total viewers, the highest in Spanish-language television history.

• Yesterday was FOX Sports GO’s third largest day ever for authenticated viewership, trailing only the days of World Series Game 1 and 2.