USMNT-England tie breaks US English-language viewership record

The US men’s national team broke an attendance record with their draw against England at the World Cup on Friday.

The game in Qatar, which ended 0-0 in the second of three group games, drew 15,377,000 English-speaking viewers in the United States, Fox said on Saturday night. It also peaked at more than 19.6 million.

That’s about six percent more than the last record of 14.51 million during the league match between Italy and Brazil at the 1994 World Cup.

Although many viewed the USMNT draw as a successful outing given who they were up against, it left many within the organization extremely frustrated.

The Americans will wrap up Tuesday’s Group B game with a must-win game against Iran. A win there will send the USMNT through to the knockout stages, but anything else would end their time in Qatar.

The record was also the second set by Fox over Thanksgiving weekend. The Dallas Cowboys’ win over the New York Giants on Thursday drew 42 million viewers, making it the most-watched regular-season football game of any network.