In 1994, when the FIFA World Cup arrived in the United States for the first time, much of the country viewed soccer as a curiosity. It was the sport that kids played on Saturday mornings before they headed to their Little League baseball game or their Pop Warner football practice. 

The 1994 World Cup changed the perception of soccer in America. It helped launch Major League Soccer two years later, introducing the sport to millions of Americans.

Now, 32 years later, as the 2026 FIFA World Cup brings the global game back to American soil, the numbers reveal something far more dramatic than mere curiosity. 

They reveal that America hasn’t just embraced soccer over the last three decades. It has become one of the sport’s most powerful consumer markets. 

According to a new report from Nielsen, U.S. viewers spent a staggering 79.8 billion minutes watching soccer in 2025 alone. That figure represents a level of consumption that would have been unimaginable in 1994. 

For comparison, a July 4 knockout stage match between the United States and Brazil during the 1994 World Cup drew about 11 million American viewers, a record for soccer at the time. 

Flash forward to today and soccer isn’t just fighting for relevance anymore. It’s competing for the country’s attention alongside the NFL, NBA and MLB. 

With the World Cup returning, Nielsen found that 33% of Americans expect their interest in soccer to increase, not just this summer but during the next 18 months. Among existing soccer fans, that number jumps to 64%. 

But the growth in soccer domestically isn’t just limited to television ratings. 

Nearly 80% of American soccer supporters use social media to receive their sports news and content. That’s not just a marketer’s dream, but a number that is significantly higher than the general population. Millennials and Gen Z lead the way, as they are constantly active on their screens watching soccer matches, scrolling through highlights, posting about the sport, playing soccer video games or ordering food through delivery apps to watch soccer at home in real time. 

And nowhere is that engagement more apparent than in Los Angeles. 

Among the 11 U.S. host cities for the 2026 World Cup, Los Angeles is one of FIFA’s crown jewels. The region is home to an estimated 5.6 million soccer fans (43% of the local population). 

Angelenos consumed roughly 4 billion minutes of soccer in 2025, nearly twice as much as New York, which consumed 2.5 million minutes despite having a larger overall population.

Ratings reveal that LA soccer fans love watching Spain’s La Liga, Mexico’s Liga MX, UEFA Champions League and the English Premier League. That’s a direct reflection on Southern California’s diversity and multicultural soccer culture. 

Even more telling, nearly 83% of Los Angeles-based soccer fans use Instagram to receive their soccer and sports content, well above the national average. 

Those numbers explain why FIFA awarded Los Angeles one of the tournament’s most prominent roles. 

In 1994, the Rose Bowl hosted the World Cup final between Brazil and Italy. In 2026, Los Angeles will host eight matches at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, including the quarterfinals.

Over 32 years, America has gone from being curious about soccer to caring about the sport. 

The question now is how much the audience will grow once the World Cup arrives this summer.

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