The 13 day star-studded tournament concludes Tuesday evening in Miami, with more visibility on the tournament than ever before.
The WBC comes to an end tonight as the USA and Venezuela step up to the plate with everything on the line. Both the USA and Venezuela escaped group stage play as the 2nd seed in its group, qualifying for the quarter finals.
A rather comfortable 5-3 win against Canada sent captain Aaron Judge and his roster of MLB superstars into a highly anticipated matchup vs the Dominican Republic Sunday night.
The USA booked its ticket to the final, narrowly beating DR, by silencing a dominant and powerhouse Dominican lineup in a 2-1 win. A spread out effort amongst some of the MLB’s brightest talent has guided the USA to its spot in tonight’s final.Â
Six days before the USA & DR semifinal, a new viewership record was reached during the USA’s 5-3 victory over Mexico. 5.02 million people tuned in on Fox, more than ever before. The USA, DR matchup as expected, has smashed that viewership record, reaching over 7 million viewers.
Early tournament data shared by Fox showed a 143% increase in total viewership over the 2023 WBC, the biggest increase in between consecutive tournaments ever.
The record for viewership in a single game will likely be broken in tonight’s final as a resilient and capable Venezuela looks to pull off the upset.
Venezuela’s path to the final was different from the USA’s. A 2nd place finish behind the DR in group stages pitted them against 2023 winners, Japan. Venezuela trailed 5-2, before exploding for five runs in the 5th and 6th inning. An 8-5 comeback victory sent them into a semifinal vs Italy, where they once again rallied late in the 7th inning to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 triumph.
Leadoff hitter Ronald Acuna Jr. will look to set the tone early tonight as he’s done throughout the tournament. A leadoff home run against Japan ignited the Venezuelans in the quarterfinals, but it was Acuna’s trademark speed that delivered when it mattered most in the semis. He beat out an infield single, deep in the hole to Italy’s shortstop, and tied the clash at 2-2 before Venezuela went on to win.
Acuna’s ability to affect the game in many ways has been emulated by his teammates all tournament long. Timely pitching and a spread out hitting effort from Luis Arraez, Maikel Garcia, Ezequiel Tovar and Wilyer Abreu, just to name a few, have carried the Red, Blue and yellow to its first WBC final.
Pre-tournament favorites USA will look to quiet the noise. Strong starting pitching efforts from the likes of Logan Webb, Paul Skenes and more, have been followed by authoritative bullpen performances during the 2-week run. Similarly to Venezuela, all parts of the American lineup have delivered throughout. Kyle Schwarber and Roman Anthony have spearheaded the attack, while the offense as a whole has displayed a nice blend of contact and power. Captain America Aaron Judge has been outstanding in the field and will look to deliver at the plate in his first chance at international success.
The 2026 WBC has delivered and the world has responded! With more viewers and sights on the game than ever before, a new champion of the world will be crowned at 8:00 pm Est. in the final!
