"Peak Rating of 7.4%"... SBS Achieves Triple Crown in Terrestrial Viewership for Nagoya Asian Games Baseball Match Against Taiwan

As South Korea clinched a dominant 5-0 victory over Taiwan in their opening group-stage match of the men's baseball tournament at the 2026 Nagoya Asian Games, SBS proved the strength of its premier broadcasting team by sweeping the top spot in viewership ratings.

According to Nielsen Korea, a viewership ratings research company, on September 22, the live broadcast of the Group B opening match between South Korea and Taiwan aired by SBS the previous day recorded 4.8% in household viewership in the Seoul metropolitan area, taking first place among the three major terrestrial broadcasters, outperforming MBC (4.2%) and KBS (2.4%).

In the 2049 demographic rating, a key indicator for advertising, SBS also claimed the top spot in the same time slot with 2.2% in the metropolitan area and 1.8% nationwide. The peak momentary viewership soared to 7.4% for households in the metropolitan area and 3.2% for the 2049 demographic, completing a "triple crown."

On the mound, starting pitcher Kwak 빈 delivered an overwhelming performance, pitching six innings with 10 strikeouts, allowing no runs and no hits. Play-by-play announcer Jeong Woo-young thrilled viewers by exclaiming, "There are no more ill fates against Taiwan." When the team's no-hitter, which had continued until two outs in the 9th inning, was broken, analyst Lee Soon-chul delivered a bittersweet apology, saying, "I misspoke," adding to the charm of the live broadcast.

In the batting lineup, Yoon Dong-hee's clinching solo home run and Kim Joo-won's three-hit performance stood out. At the moment of Yoon Dong-hee's home run, analyst Lee Soon-chul could not hide his admiration, remarking, "Yoon Dong-hee is truly made for international competitions." The seamless chemistry between announcer Jeong Woo-young and analyst Lee Dae-ho further enhanced the immersion of the game.

Demonstrating its powerhouse status in sports broadcasting, SBS will continue to live-broadcast major matches consecutively today (September 22). Starting with the women's volleyball bronze medal match (South Korea vs. Thailand) at 4:00 PM, followed by the men's baseball group stage match (South Korea vs. Hong Kong) at 6:30 PM, and the men's football group stage match (South Korea vs. Saudi Arabia) at 7:00 PM, the network plans to deliver the fever of victory to living rooms.

(Photo courtesy of SBS Entertainment News, reported by Kang Sun-ae)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.