FS1 has seen one of its most successful months in recent memory on the back of World Cup viewership. The week of June 15 was the cable network’s most-watched in its history by total-day audience, averaging 885,000 viewers across its dayparts. But it appears as if that success did not rub off on the network’s new morning show, Wake Up Barstool.

According to a report by Austin Karp in Sports Business Journal, Wake Up Barstool averaged just 19,000 viewers on FS1 in the month of June, keeping in line with the show’s soft television ratings that began last September when it debuted. Get Up, the show that airs in the same hours on ESPN, averaged 426,000 viewers, a staggering 2,142% better than Wake Up Barstool, per SBJ.

The underwhelming viewership is particularly notable given FS1’s success throughout the rest of the month. Historically, major live sporting events, like World Cup matches, can have a halo effect on a network’s other programming, even lasting through the overnight hours and into the next day. No such momentum appeared to hold for the 8 a.m. ET episodes of Wake Up Barstool.

The show has failed to capture any sort of loyal audience on linear television since its debut at the beginning of last football season. In its first week on the air, Wake Up Barstoolaveraged 16,500 viewers on FS1. Of course, Wake Up Barstool is unique in the sense that it is also available in full on YouTube, where episodes generally earn between 5,000 and 20,000 additional views.

To be abundantly fair to the show, it did technically earn 2,500 more viewers on average in the month of June than it did in its inaugural week last September. But it’d be quite the stretch to call that improvement a success, especially considering the potential viewership windfall live World Cup matches could’ve provided.

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FS1 earned a rare month-long victory over ESPN in primetime viewership during the month of June thanks to the strength of this year’s World Cup audience.

Fox Sports 1 averaged 1.31 million viewers in primetime throughout the month of June, good for the second most-watched cable network of the month behind only sister channel Fox News which averaged 2.26 million viewers in primetime. ESPN finished in third place, averaging 1.08 million viewers for the month in primetime.

Top Cable Channels for the month of June. Live+SD, Primetime. Viewers P2+.

1. FOX News Channel: 2.26M
2. Fox Sports 1: 1.31M
3. ESPN: 1.078M
4. MSNOW: 1.015M
5. Home and Garden TV: 703K
6. CNN: 610K
7. TBS: 537K
8. Hallmark Channel: 516K
9. USA Network: 500K
10. History: 491K

— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) July 7, 2026

In total, FS1 aired 32 World Cup matches in the month of June, though not all of those matches aired in primetime. Of those 32 matches, just 15 overlapped with the primetime hours, generally measured as between 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. ET. Several also aired simultaneously to matches on Fox during the final day of group play, with FS1 typically getting the less desirable matchup.

Nevertheless, all FS1’s World Cup programming seemed to lift most of the network’s other programming. Per Sports Business Journal, the week of June 15 was the most-watched week in FS1 history by total-day audience. The network averaged 885,000 viewers for the week, 90% better than ESPN’s total-day audience in the same week. As a company, Fox swept the three major ratings categories — broadcast, cable, and news — for both the week of June 15 and June 22.

A World Cup is one of the rare sporting events that commands both a high level of interest and has the volume of inventory to genuinely lift a cable network like FS1 despite the secular decline of the medium over many years. While streamers and tech companies seem to be the favorites to land the tournament come 2030, there’s still clear value to be derived from legacy broadcasters airing the World Cup. Whether that value can justify the expected doubling or tripling of media rights fees for the next tournament, however, remains to be seen.

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Alex Rodriguez had a rough go of it interviewing Justin Verlander ahead of the Home Run Derby.

Rodriguez appeared to be setting up some kind of underdog redemption angle for Verlander, asking him, “How do you explain being a late draft pick, being designated for assignment a couple of times with two different teams?”

Awkward moment for A-Rod, interviewing Justin Verlander saying we was designated for assignment by two different teams.

Verlander, a 10-time All-Star, has never been designated for assignment. pic.twitter.com/nxLbChZbDq

— SportsTalk 790 (@SportsTalk790) July 13, 2026

Neither half of that sentence is true. Verlander went second overall in the 2004 draft, one pick after Matt Bush, and was in the majors within a year. He’s also never been designated for assignment, not once, across 20 seasons and stops with the Tigers, Astros, Mets, and Giants. Being DFA’d is a process reserved for players a team is trying to get off its 40-man roster. It has never once applied to a 10-time All-Star and three-time Cy Young winner.

Verlander, understandably, did not know what to do with this.

“Me? No, you’ve got the wrong notes,” he said.

Rodriguez laughed it off and pivoted to asking how Verlander has pitched at a high level for so long, which, fine, is actually a reasonable question. It’s just not the one he’d spent the last thirty seconds building up to.

Whether it makes him feel better or not, Rodriguez wasn’t the only Fox voice getting called out for scrambling a Hall of Famer’s career this week. Derek Jeter needled Colin Cowherd on Monday over a 2024 interview where Cowherd asked what it was like facing Nolan Ryan — a pitcher whose career ended two years before Jeter’s started.

Someone might want to give A-Rod the same warning next time.

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Derek Jeter may never let Colin Cowherd off the hook.

After Jeter’s first appearance on The Herd around the All-Star Game in 2024, the veteran radio host went viral after misremembering the timeline of Jeter’s legendary career. During the interview, Cowherd asked Jeter what it was like to face Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan on the mound, only for Jeter to hilariously correct him in real time that their careers did not overlap.

“I never faced Nolan, slow down,” Jeter laughed. “No, I was way after Nolan.”

In fairness to Cowherd, Jeter’s rookie season came just two years after Ryan’s retirement.

But Jeter got another opportunity to rib Cowherd about the mistake on Monday, as the former New York Yankees star once again joined The Herd to promote Fox’s coverage of the All-Star game. And he did not pass it up.

“Before we get started, I just want to remind you … you just said, ‘Smart people make mistakes,'” Jeter said. “Last time I was on your show, you asked me about facing Nolan Ryan, so let’s just hope you got your facts straight this time.”

“Last time I was on your show, you asked me about facing Nolan Ryan. Let’s just hope you got your facts straight this time.” – Derek Jeter sets some ground rules before his appearance with Colin Cowherd https://t.co/CqKJgftqZepic.twitter.com/ERwA1TdqHH

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 13, 2026

Jeter clearly has Cowherd’s respect and handled the gaffe cleverly, especially for someone MLB fans typically think of as defensive and dry on-air.

Jeter will be part of Fox’s studio coverage for the All-Star game on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. ET.

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