What did we learn from the viewership numbers of France’s 4-2 win over Croatia in the FIFA World Cup final from Russia? Pretty much what we knew prior to the opening kick of the tournament last month. The World Cup presented significant challenges for Fox and Telemundo given the time zone difference from Russia to North America and the absence of the United States national team. The final also had its own challenges. As great as Croatia played during the tournament, a more traditional power for France (or the appearance of a cross-over star such as Cristiano Ronaldo or Leo Messi) would have had a significant impact on Fox’s viewership.



France’s win averaged 11.82 million viewers on Fox including a streaming audience of 558,00 per average minute. That was a 32 percent drop in viewership compared to the 17.3 million who tuned into ABC for Germany-Argentina in 2014. The final was also down 27 percent versus the 2010 Spain-Netherlands match, which drew 15.5...