MIAMI (DA) — Curaçao’s FIFA World Cup 2026 match against Ecuador delivered 6.0 million viewers across Telemundo’s Spanish-language coverage, becoming the second most-watched Ecuador men’s World Cup match ever in Spanish-language media, Telemundo said Wednesday.
The June 20 match was part of a record-setting start to the tournament for Telemundo and Peacock. Through the first 40 matches, Spanish-language coverage of the World Cup is averaging 5.5 million viewers, up 141% from the same stage of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
For Curaçao, the audience number adds another marker to the country’s historic World Cup debut. Curaçao’s opening match against Germany on June 14 drew 4.6 million viewers, while the match against Ecuador brought the Blue Wave into one of the highest-profile Spanish-language audiences of the group stage.
Telemundo said the Ecuador-Curaçao audience was up 102% compared with Ecuador’s second group-stage match in 2022 against the Netherlands, which drew 3.0 million viewers.
The Group E numbers also showed strong interest around Curaçao’s opponents. Ivory Coast’s match against Ecuador on June 14 drew 6.8 million viewers, and Germany’s match against Ivory Coast on June 20 drew 5.4 million.
Telemundo said 19 matches have delivered more than 5 million viewers through the first 40 matches of the tournament. At the same stage in 2022, only two matches had crossed that mark.
Digital viewership also has surged. Peacock and Telemundo streaming platforms are averaging 2.3 million viewers in average minute audience through 40 matches, up 277% from the same point in 2022.
Telemundo said audiences have consumed 26.2 billion total minutes across Telemundo, Peacock and Telemundo streaming platforms through the first 40 matches, already surpassing the 22 billion total minutes consumed during the entire 2022 tournament in Spanish.
The FIFA World Cup 2026 continues across Telemundo, Universo, Peacock and the Telemundo App through July 19.