Women’s Euros final smashes viewership and attendance records
England’s victory over Germany in the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 final wasn’t the only win at Wembley Stadium on Sunday.
The game was the most-watched women’s soccer match ever in the U.K., attracting a peak audience of 17.4 million on the BBC and 5.9 million streams on digital platforms. The previous record-holder, England’s 2019 World Cup semi-final defeat, was 11.7 million.
In Germany, 17.9 million viewers tuned in. But that’s not all. There were 87,192 fans in attendance — the highest ever for any men’s or women’s European national team tournament game.
With an average of 18,544 fans, it was the best attended tournament in its history with the combined spectatorship reaching 574,875, more than doubling the previous record of 240,555 in 2017.
UEFA recently revealed that 54% of the group stages’ viewership was driven by neutral followers.
Ahead of Sunday’s game, GlobalData projected that fans would spend $167 million during the match, with $56 million spent in pubs, bars, and restaurants — fans were predicted to consume over 8 million pints of beer or cider ahead of the game.
Of the overall figure, $112 million was estimated to go toward snacks, drinks, and merchandise for fans watching at home.
A study published by Ernst & Young in May projected the 16-team tournament would generate $65.6 million in revenue for its nine host cities, nearly quadrupling the revenue generated during the 2017 competition.