The TV audience during the Euro 2020 finals last night hit a record high of 30.95 million viewers, as per the overnight figures released.
The ratings of the broadcast increased dramatically in the extra time during the match between England and Italy at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, which was broadcast on both BBC and ITV television channels.
An average of 29.85m watched the entire game, according to statistics.
Broadcast by both the BBC and ITV channels make the combined figure the highest TV audience since the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997.
The Game
While England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford saved two Azzurri bomb kicks last night, Lions striker Marcus Rashford hit the post and failed to score the net before Jadon Sancho and Buka Saka got their penalties to give Italy the win after over 50 years.
“You can cut ratings in so many different ways and audience measurement has changed over the years, but safe to say this: it is among the biggest audiences in UK broadcasting history,” commented the international editor of Deadline’s, Jake Kanter.
Comparison
Giving a recent comparison for you to digest this record viewership better, when the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson was giving his statement announcing the new strict coronavirus restrictions in March of last year it was viewed by more than 27 million people, the highest TV audience in recent history. That record stays broken.
In terms of football, the highest ratings before the release of Sunday’s figures appeared in the West Germany and England semi-finals at the 1990 World Cup, with 25.2 million views.
That also highlighted the tragic loss for England when the game went to then penalties.
The official viewership numbers for Sunday’s Euro 2020 finale may be even more if those who have seen the match at pirated services are also counted.
