From Record-Breaking Television, Attendance, And Merchandise Sales, 2023 World Baseball Classic Was A Home Run

The 2023 World Baseball Classic was a rousing success on a host of levels including attendance, television viewership, and more. When looking inside the numbers, it wasn’t just in North America that the tournament excelled; it was worldwide.

When baseball historians look back at the 2023 World Baseball Classic, it will show that Japan beat USA 3-2, but it was truly baseball that was elevated worldwide. At a time when college basketball dominates the sports headlines in the U.S., and spring training games signal that the Major League Baseball regular season is upon us, the WBC was an electric atmosphere that had all the earmarks of the MLB postseason. Here are the numbers that show how successful the event was. And why the World Baseball Classic is already announced to return in 2026, just three years from now as MLB and the MLBPA end their current labor agreement.

Record Attendance

Attendance for the tournament totaled 1,306,414 making it the highest-attended World Baseball Classic since it was started in 2006 and marks a +20% increase over the previous high-water mark in 2017. There were over 200 credentialed media for the Championship game that was a sellout at 36,058 at LoanDepot Park, home to the Miami Marlins.

Record Breaking Television In The U.S. And Internationally

On television and streaming, the WBC was a massive hit throughout the entire tournament, not just in the U.S. but around the globe.

42.4% of Japanese households watched the WBC Final vs. USA despite the game taking place at 8 AM on a Wednesday in Japan. The Quarterfinal game between Japan and Italy rated a 48.7 in Japan, making it the most-watched game in World Baseball Classic history. According to Major League Baseball, three of the four most-watched games in tournament history on record took place during this year’s Classic.

1. 48.7: Japan vs. Italy (2023 Quarterfinals)

2. 44.4: Japan vs. Korea (2023 First Round)

3. 43.4: Japan vs. Cuba (2006 World Baseball Classic Final)

4. 42.5: Japan vs. Mexico (2023 Semifinals)

In the U.S., the WBC championship game was the most-watched WBC game of all-time. The game pulled a combined average viewership of 5.2 million across FS1, FOX Deportes, and FOX Sports streaming up a whopping +69% over the previous high in 2017. The game peaked at 6.506 million viewers as Angels teammates Shohei Ohtani for Team
TISI
Japan struck out Mike Trout of Team USA to clinch the win. The 2023 Semifinals (Japan vs. Mexico and USA vs. Cuba) on FS1 and FOX Deportes was the most-watched semifinal round of any World Baseball Classic in the U.S. The two games averaged 2.403 million viewers, an increase of +96% compared to the 2017 Semifinals.

Outside of Japan and the U.S., the 2023 World Baseball Classic smashed viewership records in other countries. Compared to the 2017 tournament, these countries saw staggering increases in viewership:

1. Taiwan +151%

2. Mexico +103%

3. Canada +44%

4. Korea +36%

5. Puerto Rico +11%

Record Breaking Merchandise Sales

Sales of merchandise for the World Baseball Classic were a home run, both online and at the ballparks where games were hosted. While MLB did not provide the details, they reported that sales online through MLBShop.com and Fanatics set a new tournament record, breaking the previous top mark in 2017 by +149%. At Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taiwan, Tokyo Dome in Japan, Chase Field in Phoenix, and LoanDepot Park in Miami, sales were the highest in the history of the event and more than +100% higher than in 2017.

What Created The Increases?

When asking why the increases across key business channels, the dramatic play was a large part of it. Japan had a walk-off win in the semifinals against Team Mexico, and the championship game came down to the last out of the game between two of MLB’s best players. But a large part of the global increase in interest has to be tied to the growing list of distribution channels that showed the games. The 2023 World Baseball Classic was seen in 163 countries and territories, with 63 different media partners broadcasting the tournament in 13 languages. The complete list of countries and broadcast platforms can be seen here.