by WBSC Baseball Division, www.ibaf.org
The Sunday night finale of the XXVII WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup generated a nationwide sensation across Japan, outperforming the nation’s most popular television programs during some of the most valuable prime time hours.
According to Video Research, Ltd, Sunday’s electric and close-fought world championship finale between the U-18 National Teams of host nation Japan and the United States generated an average TV ratings in Japan of 18.6% and peaked at an astounding 27.2% during the 8th inning.
The U-18 world championship was featured live and free-to-air across Japan on TV Asahi – one of the most wide-reaching broadcasting networks in Japan.
The official hashtag of the junior flagship event (#U18WorldCup) was also one of the top trending topics on Twitter in Japan Sunday night, with celebrities, pop singers and Nippon Professional Baseball clubs joining in the conversation.
The remarkable ratings come at a time when the organisers of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics are evaluating sports to potentially add to the Olympic Programme.