France World Cup Final Gets Strong Ratings Despite NFL Competition

The ratings for Team USA's FIBA Women's World Cup final against France were revealed on Tuesday, as were the ratings for their semifinal showdown against Spain one day prior.

The USA vs. France game on Sunday (which the USA ended up winning 97-79) drew 1.2 million average viewers across HBO Max, TNT, and truTV. This marks a 158% increase from the 2022 FIBA Women's World Cup final and a staggering 750% increase from the 2018 FIBA Women's World Cup Final.

The USA's semifinal game against Spain on Saturday averaged 938,000 viewers. This made it the fourth most-watched FIBA Women's World Cup game ever, while the final against France was the third most-watched game in the tournament's history.

The only two games that drew better ratings than the USA-France final arrived earlier in the tournament, when the USA squad's near-upset against Italy averaged 1.3 million viewers, and then their final group-stage game against Czechia averaged 1.2 million viewers.

NFL Context Matters When Analyzing FIBA World Cup Ratings

On the surface, it might seem strange that the USA's games against Spain and France drew less attention then some of their group stage games, given the higher stakes and better competition.

But one must remember that this was the NFL's opening weekend. The championship game in France tipped off right in the middle of Sunday's Week 1 NFL regular season action, which undoubtedly detracted from the ratings the game would have received otherwise.

Not to mention that the U.S. Open final was going on at the same time, which featured an American tennis player (Ben Shelton) and also drew a ton of interest.

There wasn't any NFL action on Saturday, when the USA faced Spain in the semifinal. But the game occurred in the middle of college football action, which probably had a similar impact to that of the NFL.

Several media members expressed frustration about this timing for the FIBA World Cup's most important games, as it seemingly detracted from what would have otherwise been a great ratings turnout.

Still, averaging well over one million viewers for a women's basketball game in the heart of NFL Sunday is a testament to how much the game has grown, along with the star power of Team USA players.

Caitlin Clark is the biggest star of them all, along with Paige Bueckers and Angel Reese. This tournament was just a taste of what this group of young stars can provide for Team USA, both on the court and in terms of the attention they can draw.

The world will be eager to see what these three can do on the biggest stage, during the Paris 2028 Olympics.

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