Women's Euro 2022 final is most watched women's football match ever in the UK

Sam Moore
Updated ·2 min read
LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 31: Ellen White and Jill Scott of England lift the trophy during the UEFA Women's Euro 2022 final match between England and Germany at Wembley Stadium on July 31, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
Ellen White and Jill Scott of England lift the trophy during the UEFA Women's Euro 2022 final. (/Getty Images)

The final of Euro 2022 which saw England defeat Germany 2-1 after extra time drew huge viewing figures for the BBC.

Airing on BBC One, the match received a peak viewing audience of 17.4 million people making it the most watched women's football game in British history.

The broadcast also had the highest peak audience of 2022.

Read more: England v Denmark clash at Euro 2020 earns peak TV audience of 25 million viewers

Across the BBC iPlayer streaming service and the BBC Sport website and app there were an additional 5.9 million streams as an England national team won an international tournament for the first time since 1966.

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 31: Millie Bright of England holds an England flag during the UEFA Women's Euro 2022 final match between England and Germany at Wembley Stadium on July 31, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Pantling - The FA/The FA via Getty Images)
Millie Bright holds an England flag after winning Euro 2022. (The FA via Getty Images)

Watch: A look at how England won Euro 2022

The previous viewing record for a women's football match was 9.3 million which was when England beat Sweden 4-0 last week.

Around 80% of all TV's in the UK were watching the final which averaged 11 million viewers which — by that metric — makes it the second most watched broadcast of 2022 behind the Queen's platinum jubilee celebrations.

The in-stadium audience was also another record with nearly 90,000 fans attending Wembley Stadium, smashing all attendance figures for a women's football match.

The team are set to embark on a victory parade today around London.

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 31: The England team poses on the podium for a group picture following the UEFA Women's Euro England 2022 final match between England and Germany at Wembley Stadium on July 31, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images,)
The England team poses on the podium after winning Euro 2022. (Getty Images,)

BBC director general Tim Davie said in a statement: “We are incredibly proud to have championed women’s football and are thrilled we were able to bring such a special sporting moment to the public. This was the most-watched women’s football game on UK television of all-time and the most-watched programme in 2022 so far - and deservedly so. Everyone at the BBC is delighted at the win and being able to share that with the public.”

The viewing figures are often an underestimate given they can't track multiple people watching one TV and the game was also played in pubs and on big screens and cinemas across the country.