World Cup quarterfinals average record 10.4 million Spanish-language viewers on Telemundo, Peacock

The FIFA World Cup 2026 quarterfinals averaged a total audience delivery of 10.4 million viewers across Telemundo and Peacock, making it the most-watched quarterfinal stage in Spanish-language media history, according to Nielsen data released by NBCUniversal.

The four-match average increased 154% from the 4.1 million viewers delivered during the corresponding stage of the 2022 tournament.

Linear coverage averaged 4.9 million viewers during the quarterfinal match windows, up 80% from 2.7 million in 2022. The digital average minute audience reached 5.5 million, an increase of 302% from 1.4 million.

All four 2026 quarterfinals now rank as the most-watched matches from that stage in Spanish-language media history based on Total Audience Delivery.

Norway’s match against England led the round with 13 million viewers July 11, 2026. Argentina’s victory over Switzerland later that day averaged 11.8 million, becoming the most-watched Argentina soccer match in Spanish-language media history.

The Argentina-Switzerland audience was 11% higher than the previous record of 10.6 million, set by Argentina’s Round of 32 match against Cape Verde.

Quarterfinal audiences

• France vs. Morocco, July 9, 2026: 8 million
• Spain vs. Belgium, July 10, 2026: 7.3 million
• Norway vs. England, July 11, 2026: 13 million
• Argentina vs. Switzerland, July 11, 2026: 11.8 million
• Tournament-to-date results

Through the first 100 matches, coverage across Telemundo, Universo, Peacock and Telemundo’s streaming platforms averaged 5.9 million viewers, up 150% from the 2.4 million average through the quarterfinals in 2022.

The linear match-window average increased 85% to 3.1 million viewers from 1.7 million. The digital average minute audience grew 309% to 2.8 million from 690,000.

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Viewers consumed 70.6 billion minutes of tournament coverage through July 11. That was 63% higher than the combined 43.2 billion minutes consumed during the entire 2018 and 2022 men’s World Cup tournaments in Spanish.

The tournament has delivered the 12 most-watched World Cup matches in Spanish-language media history based on Total Audience Delivery.

July 11 ranked as the tournament’s second most-watched matchday, averaging 12.4 million viewers for the Norway-England and Argentina-Switzerland quarterfinals.

Thirty-eight matches have averaged more than 6 million viewers, compared with two during the full 2022 tournament. Thirty-three matches have averaged at least 3 million streaming viewers across Peacock and Telemundo’s digital platforms.

Telemundo network performance

Telemundo ranked first among Spanish-language television networks during total day for each of the tournament’s first 30 matchdays, from June 11 through July 11.

The network averaged 1.9 million total-day viewers and accounted for a 76% share among the three measured Spanish-language networks. Its delivery was 307% higher than its May 2026 average.

Audience and advertiser research

NBCUniversal research found that perceptions of the World Cup as a way to learn about other cultures increased 20% between the tournament’s opening week and the knockout stage. Perceptions that it brought people around the world together rose 18%, while the share of viewers who believed it helped them connect with other soccer fans increased 16%.

Viewers were also more likely to describe Telemundo and Peacock’s Spanish-language coverage as unifying, inspiring and family-friendly.

Compared with the 2022 tournament, NBCUniversal advertisers recorded a 33% increase in message memorability, a 46% increase in the likelihood that viewers would search for advertised brands and a 20% increase in purchase intent.

Television audience figures are based on Nielsen Big Data + Panel live-plus-same-day match-window measurements. Streaming figures are from Adobe Analytics. Audience and advertiser findings were drawn from NBCUniversal Brand Planning and Insights, MarketCast and EDO research.

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