2026 World Baseball Classic Becomes the Most-Watched Program Ever on Netflix in Japan and the Biggest Global Baseball Streaming Event Ever

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2026 World Baseball Classic Becomes the Most-Watched Program Ever on Netflix in Japan and the Biggest Global Baseball Streaming Event Ever

Entertainment

25 March 2026

GlobalJapan

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Paving a new way forward for live sports viewing

The 2026 World Baseball Classic , for which Netflix held exclusive streaming rights in Japan, has set a historic record. The live stream of the Japan vs. Australia game is now the most-watched title ever on Netflix in Japan1 - surpassing every series, film, anime, and other sports program on the service.

Netflix's exclusive streaming of the global baseball tournament in Japan this year delivered the largest-ever streaming audience across all platforms worldwide and marked the most streamed baseball game ever.

This year's tournament saw widespread adoption of Netflix's uniquely flexible viewing styles - such as watching on smartphones and other mobile devices, catching up via on-demand replays, and expanding viewing beyond Japan's games to marquee matchups between other countries. It also introduced new forms of coverage using cutting-edge technologies, like volumetric video, dirt cameras, indoor drones, and Statcast, as well as pre-game and post-game shows produced right on the field. These innovations resonated strongly with a broad audience - particularly viewers under 35 and women - and, combined with the buzz on social media, helped establish a new sports-viewing culture across Japan: enjoying the games anytime, anywhere, at your own pace.

Kaata Sakamoto, who oversees Japan Content at Netflix, said:

"This tournament marked Netflixs successful entry into live sports streaming in Japan. I deeply admire the intense emotion and passionate drama both on and off the field. This major undertaking succeeded thanks to the dedicated staff, stakeholders, and over 100 partner companies and municipalities. We will leverage these results and learnings to continue delivering unique live experiences on Netflix."Viewers2In Japan, World Baseball Classic games on Netflix3 reached a total of 31.4M viewers. This figure includes live streams of all 47 games. The most-watched game, Japan vs. Australia, drew 17.9M viewers in Japan.

Throughout the tournament, 55% watched at least one non-Japan game4. The top three Japan games were Japan vs. Australia (17.9M), Japan vs. Korea (17.86M), and Japan vs. Venezuela (17.26M). For non-Japan matchups, the top three were United States vs. Venezuela, Australia vs. Korea, and United States vs. Canada.

For many in Japan, Samurai Japan was the entry point, and from there, they went on to explore teams from all 20 participating countries and regions, resulting in highly diverse viewing patterns.

Audience Profile (By Age and Gender)5An analysis combining TV viewing data from Video Research Ltd. with Netflix viewing data shows:

Viewers under 35 accounted for more than 30% of total viewership, with those aged 19 and under making up 14.2%.

48% of viewing came from female audiences aged 20 and over.

Netflix's coverage of the World Baseball Classic demonstrated a broad and diverse audience reaching a significant group of younger and female viewers.

Devices and Viewing StylesViewing took place on a wide range of devices, including smartphones, tablets, PCs, and connected TVs (such as smart TVs and streaming devices). Around 85% of viewers watched the games on television, while around 38% watched on smartphones or tablets. On average, each viewer used more than one device, indicating that people enjoyed the WBC in many everyday situations - during commutes to work or school, while out and about, and in their own living rooms. Netflix's flexible viewing experience allowed many fans to enjoy the games in ways that fit their lifestyles.

The average viewing time of World Baseball Classic per game per Netflix account was 147 minutes (for games involving Japan), underscoring deep engagement with the tournament.

Sharing Excitement in Local CommunitiesTo coincide with the World Baseball Classic, Netflix partnered with local municipalities and schools in the hometowns of 30 Samurai Japan players to host public viewing events across Japan.

Led by each region and school under the theme of "cheering for hometown heroes in their hometowns," these events were filled with immense enthusiasm and a sense of unity.

Number of hosting local governments and schools: 29 organizations

Number of events held: 77

Number of participants: 11,636 (total for 5 games)

Looking at viewership trends by prefecture, viewership was particularly high in the Tohoku and Kyushu regions. Specifically, viewership was relatively high in Iwate Prefecture (the hometown of Shohei Ohtani and Yusei Kikuchi) and Kumamoto Prefecture (the hometown of Munetaka Murakami), indicating that active and widespread viewing was not limited to the Tokyo metropolitan area but expanded across various regions.

Excitement Across Social Media with Creators and Fans6Netflix's official social media accounts saw strong engagement with World Baseball Classic-related content. A total of 52 videos surpassed 1 million views each, and the most watched special video - featuring Touch performed by Koshi Inaba - exceeded 7 million views.

The Classic's content extended far beyond Japan's games, encompassing highlights from matchups between other countries, breakdowns of memorable moments from past tournaments, and off field stories that revealed the human side of the players - delivering coverage from every angle.

Through initiatives such as behind the scenes coverage of national team training camps, the live program BEHIND THE DRAMA, the Netflix WBC support song Touch by Koshi Inaba, and dance projects featuring avant garde performance group Avantgardey and Nogizaka Baseball Club members from Nogizaka46, Netflix closed the

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