Thursday, July 17, 2025

MLB All-Star Game Has Slight Drop In Viewers


The 2025 MLB All-Star Game, featuring the first-ever swing-off to decide the winner, drew an average of 7.19 million viewers on Fox, per Nielsen data. 

It marked Fox’s highest viewership since the Super Bowl and the network’s best Tuesday night audience since Game 4 of the 2024 World Series. Still, viewership dipped 3.5% from the 2024 All-Star Game, making it the second-least watched Midsummer Classic.

Kyle Schwarber’s three home runs powered the National League to a 4-3 swing-off victory after the American League erased a six-run deficit to tie the game 6-6 in the ninth. 

The Atlanta-hosted game peaked at 8.1 million viewers from 9:15-9:30 p.m. EDT.

Introduced in 2022 by MLB and the players’ association to address pitcher shortages, the swing-off format saw three batters per league take three swings each against coaches, akin to a soccer penalty shootout.

Baseball’s All-Star Game outperformed other sports’ all-star events. The NHL skipped its All-Star Game this year, while the NBA’s All-Star Game and the NFL’s Pro Bowl (featuring skills competitions and flag football) each averaged 4.7 million viewers on TNT and ABC, respectively.

The Home Run Derby on Monday night averaged 5.73 million viewers on ESPN, up 5% from 2024.