Numeris: 77% of Canada saw FIFA men’s World Cup; average viewer watched 15 hours

The 2026 FIFA men’s World Cup was the most-watched edition of the international soccer tournament in Canadian history, according to an audience measurement organization.

Numeris says that nearly 31.5 million people — or 77 per cent of Canada — watched the tournament at some point this summer, up from 71 per cent in 2018 and 68 per cent in 2022.

The number of hours watched was also up over the previous two tournaments in Russia and Qatar, with the average viewer taking in 15 hours of matches on Bell Media’s TSN, RDS, CTV, Noovo and Crave.

Canada’s men’s national team was eliminated from the tournament with a 3-0 loss to Morocco on July 4 in the Round of 16. The match averaged 5.4 million viewers and reached 11.7 million Canadians, making it the most-watched Canada men’s soccer match on record and the biggest non-final World Cup broadcast in Canadian history.

The final between Spain and Argentina drew a record average World Cup audience of 6.4 million viewers. Nearly 15 million Canadians tuned in to at least part of the match.

Numeris gathered its viewing data from TV metres.

The tournament marked Canada’s first men’s World Cup matches on home soil as co-host with the United States and Mexico.

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The Canadian men’s team earned its first point, win and knockout-stage berth at the expanded 48-team event.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 23, 2026.