Argentina vs. France Could Be Most-Watched Men’s Final

With superstars Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé going head to head, this weekend’s men’s World Cup Final could be the most-watched ever in the U.S.

Fox Sports’ coverage of Argentina vs. France on Sunday (10 a.m. ET) comes in the wake of the most-watched men’s semifinals and quarterfinals. 

The storylines write themselves heading into Sunday’s all-or-nothing final. Superstar Lionel Messi of Argentina has never won the World Cup. While his young rival, Kylan Mbappé is gunning for his second in a row for France.

With Messi and Mbappe fighting for the Golden Boot and Golden Ball in Qatar, look for men’s World Cup TV records to fall this weekend. 

• France advanced to the Finals with a 2-0 win against Morocco on Wednesday, and the telecast delivered 6,592,000 viewers across FOX and streaming services making it the most-watched Men’s World Cup Semifinal telecast on English language television.
• Messi and Argentina’s 3-0 semifinal win over Croatia Tuesday afternoon averaged 6,466,000 viewers across Fox and its streaming platforms. That was up 43% from the equivalent France vs. Belgium match from Russia in 2018.  
• The match peaked at 8,203,000 viewers between 2:30 and 2:45 p.m. ET. With an AMA of 677,389, it was also the most-streamed non-USA match of the tournament. 
• Fox previously grabbed the two most-watched men’s quarterfinals on record. The network’s coverage of France’s 2-1 win over England Saturday, for example, was the most-watched men’s quarterfinal ever, averaging 8,855,000 viewers.