20.7 Million Watch England Lose Out To France
More than 20 million sports fans tuned in to ITV1 last night to watch France clinch a sensational comeback victory over England in the first round of the Euro 2004 football championship.
Unofficial overnight figures from BARB show that a peak of 20.7 million viewers stayed at home to watch the game, which saw France score two goals in three minutes of injury time to come from behind and beat England 2-1.
The figures make last night’s game one of the highest football ratings on record, second only to England’s historic clash against arch-rivals Argentina in the 1998 World Cup Finals. The game attracted a peak of more than 23 million to BBC One in 1998.
The latest data shows that an average of more than 17.6 million people tuned in to watch England’s Euro 2004 debut, which attracted an impressive share of the available audience between 7:45pm and 10:00pm last night.
Viewing for last night’s clash neared the 22 million people that a survey conducted by Carat predicted would watch the game at home. The media agency predicts that a further 7 million sports fans watched the match in pubs and clubs across the country (see Almost 30 Million To Watch England’s Euro 2004 Debut).
ITV is experiencing a surge in advertising revenue following a high demand for commercial spots during its Euro 2004 coverage. It is understood that break junctions during last night’s match brought in around £6 million for the broadcaster, which is equivalent to three months of commercials during Coronation Street.
A number of high-profile motoring, finance, alcohol and sports manufacturers have been clambering to associate themselves with the tournament. ITV has already secured brands including Nike, Ford, Carlsberg and Guinness to premium slots during its coverage (see ITV Set To Score £6 Million From England Game).
| Viewing Figures For Euro 2000 Tournament | |||
| Game | Week Ending | Channel | Viewers (M) |
| Euro 2000: Holland vs Czech Republic | 11-Jun-00 | BBC1 | 8.03 |
| Euro 2000: Belguim vs Sweden | 11-Jun-00 | ITV | 7.33 |
| Euro 2000: France vs Denmark | 11-Jun-00 | ITV | 6.93 |
| Euro 2000: Portugal vs England | 18-Jun-00 | ITV | 14.94 |
| Euro 2000: England vs Germany | 18-Jun-00 | BBC1 | 10.91 |
| Euro 2000: Belgium vs Italy | 18-Jun-00 | BBC1 | 6.85 |
| Euro 2000: Denmark vs Holland | 18-Jun-00 | ITV | 6.32 |
| Euro 2000: England vs Germany | 18-Jun-00 | ITV | 6.08 |
| Euro 2000: Germany vs Romania | 18-Jun-00 | BBC1 | 6.04 |
| Euro 2000: England vs Romania | 25-Jun-00 | BBC1 | 14.56 |
| Euro 2000: Spain vs France | 25-Jun-00 | BBC1 | 7.73 |
| Euro 2000: France vs Holland | 25-Jun-00 | ITV | 7.22 |
| Euro 2000: Italy vs Romania | 25-Jun-00 | ITV | 6.7 |
| Euro 2000: Turkey vs France | 25-Jun-00 | ITV | 6.47 |
| Euro 2000: Holland vs Yugoslavia | 25-Jun-00 | ITV | 6.25 |
| Euro 2000 Portugal vs France | 02-Jul-00 | ITV | 9.7 |
| Euro 2000 Final: France vs Italy | 02-Jul-00 | BBC1 | 9.25 |
| Euro 2000 Italy vs Holland | 02-Jul-00 | BBC1 | 7.08 |
Audiences for the previous Euro 2000 championship peaked at just under the 15 million mark when England took on Portugal in the first round of the tournament. A further 14.5 million people tuned in the watch England take on Romania in its final group game.
ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com
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