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The United States men's national team lost the first match of the Copa America to Colombia, 2-0.
How many people watched? Take it away, Steven Goff of the Washington Post:
FS1 drew 1.536m viewers for #CopaAmericaCentenario opener, 2nd in network history behind CONCACAF Cup last fall #usmnt
— Steven Goff (@SoccerInsider) June 4, 2016
Is that for all soccer matches or....
... Second for a U.S. men's match, that is
— Steven Goff (@SoccerInsider) June 4, 2016
Okay, so very high ratings, but not historic. Still, the viewer count should satisfy any television network executives who still worry about showing soccer during prime time.
And that number, as pointed out by Jonathan Tannenwald, doesn't include Univision's ratings. To put it pessimistically, a lot of people watched the United States lose last night.
In my amateur opinion, stellar ratings can most likely be attributed to three things. First, it's the U.S. men's national team which always brings good ratings. Second, the Copa America is a massive tournament. Third, FOX has been doing heavy promotion. If you've turned on a television in the last month, you have some vague knowledge of the Copa America's existence.
As a person who enjoys soccer on television, I hope the high ratings continue for the rest of the tournament. High ratings means more advertising dollars. More advertising dollars means more soccer on television. More soccer on television means I have an excuse to stay inside and avoid human interaction.