It is no secret that soccer is popular in Germany. It is just not as known how ridiculously popular soccer is in Germany.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, an average of 26.36 million viewers watched Germany's 4-0 World Cup opening victory over Portugal. That is good for an 81.8 percent share of the audience.
To put that 81.8 percent in context, the 2014 Super Bowl was viewed by 46.7 percent of American households, according to Forbes.
So on a percentage basis, Germans opting to watch a group stage World Cup match was nearly double that of Americans viewing the Super Bowl.
While other nations might not have matched the 81.8 percent, there was still plenty of TV interest. In the United Kingdom, England's 2-1 loss to Italy brought in an average of 78 percent for a game that started at 11 p.m. local time.
For reference, in the United States, the Ghana-USA match drew a 6.3 rating with 11,093,000 viewers. The match was the highest-rated and most-viewed USMNT match of all-time.
To get more specific with the Germany numbers, 86.4 percent of individuals ages 14-49 tuned in for the opening match. The total was also a drop from the 27.91 million viewers who watched Germany's 2010 opener versus Australia.
Germany is in action again 3 p.m. ET Saturday against Ghana.
