Nielsen Media Research analysis of 18 countries, including the United States, showed that nearly 1.5 billion TV viewers from those counties watched the 2002 World Cup - with Thailand putting in the most viewing hours.
Thailand, with a combined total of 269 million World Cup viewers for the entire tournament, beat South Korea (266 million viewers) and China (263 million viewers) for the largest total audience for all World Cup matches, combined, in a single country.
Although South Korea finished second in total gross audience, it was the clear ratings winner for the tournament, capturing an average 16 percent of the potential audience for all matches.
South Korea's interest in the World Cup was driven both by its status as a host nation, and by the success of its national team. More than 14 million South Koreans, or 56 percent of the potential audience in South Korea, tuned in to watch their national team defeat Poland. In all, South Korea appeared in five of the 10 most-watched matches for the tournament in the 18 countries.
Viewing figures were also impressive in the United States, where a gross audience of more than 85 million TV viewers, or an average of 1.3 million per match, watched the World Cup.
The largest US audience for a single match was the nearly seven million viewers, combined for all telecasts, who watched Germany defeat USA, 1-0, in the quarterfinal round at Ulsan, South Korea, June 21. That game was broadcast live on ESPN, and replayed later that day on ABC.
In all, the entire World Cup attracted nearly 80 million Hispanic viewers in the U.S., or an average of 1.2 million per match, for an average rating of 4 percent. Nielsen Media Research tracks Hispanic audiences separately from overall U.S. audiences.
The Nielson Media Ratings countries are Thailand South Korea China Indonesia Malaysia USA South Africa India Sweden Canada Hong Kong Finland Australia Taiwan Ireland Singapore New Zealand Philippines.
FIFA has yet to declare the full global official viewing figures for the 2002 World Cup.
Research into World Cup 2002 viewing figures has revealed that more soccer fans watched the World Cup finals on TV in Thailand than co-host nation South Korea.
