Netherlands-Costa Rica: Second Most-Watched FIFA World Cup Quarterfinal Match on ESPN, ESPN2 or ABC

· 1.1 million Unique Viewers on WatchESPN

ESPN's presentation of Saturday's Netherlands vs. Costa Rica match, a 0-0 tie in which Netherlands advanced after extra time in a shootout at Arena Fonte Nova in Salvador, was seen by an average audience of 5,791,000 viewers based on a 3.4 fast national rating, according to Nielsen, making it the second most-watched FIFA World Cup quarterfinal match on ESPN, ESPN2 or ABC. The television audience fell behind only Friday's Brazil vs. Colombia, seen by 6,349,000 viewers based on a 3.6 fast national rating.

On WatchESPN, the match reached 1.1 million unique viewers and 60.4 million total minutes, and Argentina vs. Belgium reached 756,000 unique viewers and generated 31.9 million total minutes.

Top-10 markets for Netherlands-Costa Rica: San Francisco (6.6), Washington, DC (6.4), Miami-Ft. Lauderdale (6.2), San Diego (5.8), Baltimore (5.6), Las Vegas (5.6), Los Angeles (5.4), New York (5.4), Tampa Bay-St. Petersburg (4.6) and Hartford-New Haven (4.5).

Argentina vs. Belgium:

The earlier match on Saturday (Argentina vs. Belgium on ABC) delivered an average audience of 5,183,000 viewers based on a 3.2 rating. Top 10 markets: Miami-Ft. Lauderdale (5.5), Los Angeles (5.4), Washington, DC (5.3), San Francisco (5.2), San Diego (5.1), New York (4.8), Atlanta (4.7), Albuquerque-Santa Fe (4.5), Columbus, Ohio (4.3) and Richmond-Petersburg (4.3).

Quarterfinal Average Audience:

In all, two of the four 2014 FIFA World Cup quarterfinal matches rank among the top five matches in the round by audience across ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC. Brazil 2014 quarterfinal matches averaged 5,582,000 viewers, reflecting increases of 29 percent vs. 2010 (4,337,000) and 68 percent compared to 2006 (3,318,000). The 3.3 US household ratings average for 2014 are up 18 percent vs. 2010 (2.8 US HH rating) and 43 percent over 2006 (2.3 US HH rating).

Most-watched World Cup Quarterfinal Matches on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC:

Date Matchup Viewers Network
July 4, 2014 Colombia vs. Brazil 6,349,000 ESPN
July 5, 2014 Netherlands vs. Costa Rica 5,791,000 ESPN
July 3, 2010 Argentina vs. Germany 5,714,000 ABC
July 10, 1994 Romania vs. Sweden 5,666,000 ABC
July 9, 1994 Brazil vs. Netherlands 5,580,000 ABC

Significant Television Viewership Increases Over 2010 and 2006

Through 60 matches of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC are averaging 4,190,000 viewers based on a 2.6 US household rating per match. The 2014 audience reflect increases of 42 percent and 114 percent (vs. 2,947,000 in 2010 and 1,961,000 in 2006) in viewers, and 37 percent and 86 percent in ratings (vs. 1.9 in 2010 and 1.4 in 2006) (Note: Ratings and viewership numbers are based on the specific match windows, not including pre-match studio coverage)

The highest-rated markets for World Cup matches on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC: Washington DC (4.6), New York (4.3), San Francisco (4.1), Los Angeles (3.7) and San Diego (3.7), Hartford/New Haven (3.6), Orlando (3.5), Miami/Ft. Lauderdale (3.5), Richmond (3.4) and West Palm Beach (3.3).

WatchESPN, ESPN.com and ESPNFC.com Growth Over 2010

· Through 59 matches, WatchESPN is reached on average 835,000 unique viewers and generated 37.3 million total minutes per match, reflecting increases of 168 percent and 167 percent respectively from 2010

· ESPN.com and ESPNFC.com are averaging 13 million and 4.4 million avg daily unique visitors to-date through the World Cup, up 38% and 43%, respectively, compared to 2010

· ESPNFC.com is averaging 5.4 million video starts per day, up 877 percent from 2010.

· In addition, SportsCenter App is averaging 3.6 million unique visitors per day, an increase of 402 percent from 2010.

Semifinals Kick Off

ESPN's coverage of the 2014 FIFA World Cup will continue with the semifinals on Tuesday, July 8, with Brazil vs. Germany (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) and Wednesday, July 9, with Netherlands vs. Argentina (3:30 p.m., ESPN). Each semifinal match will be available on ESPN3, WatchESPN or WATCH ABC, and ESPN Radio.

Semifinals on ESPN:

Date Time (ET) Network Matchup Site

Tue 7/8 3:30 p.m. ESPN Brazil vs. Germany TV: Ian Darke and Steve McManaman Radio: JP Dellacamera and Tommy Smyth Belo Horizonte

Wed 7/9 3:30 p.m. ESPN Netherlands vs. Argentina TV: Jon Champion and Stewart Robson Radio: Dellacamera and Smyth Sao Paulo