UK public service broadcaster the BBC, and French commercial network TF1, drew record audiences for their coverage of the Women’s Rugby World Cup semi-final between England and France.
The match held last weekend (September 20), which ended with host nation England booking their place in the final, saw a record peak audience of 3.3 million across the BBC’s linear and digital platforms – the highest ever for a women’s rugby union match on UK television.
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The match also saw 2.4 million views on the BBC Sport live text pages.
By comparison, the BBC’s coverage of the second semi-final, which saw Canada beat incumbent WRWC winners New Zealand, drew a peak audience of 1.6 million across linear and digital channels.
BBC Sport director Alex Kay-Jelski has said: “The response to the Women’s Rugby World Cup has been phenomenal. These record-breaking figures reflect just how powerfully the tournament has connected with audiences across the UK.
“The Red Roses’ [England's] journey to the final has been inspiring, emotional, and unmissable, and BBC Sport has been proud to bring fans every moment of it.”
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By GlobalDataThe BBC holds exclusive domestic rights to air every match during the Women’s Rugby World Cup, which started on August 22 and will now end with a final between England and Canada on September 27, through a deal unveiled last August.
The broadcaster said the tournament so far has drawn 9.8 million to BBC’s linear coverage, while 8.8 million have streamed games on the broadcaster’s BBC iPlayer streaming service and BBC Sport platforms.
The tournament has drawn high digital audiences, with views of clips on BBC Sport’s social media platforms racking up 36 million views so far.
In France, meanwhile, a record average audience of 3.8 million tuned into TF1’s coverage of the match, which peaked at 4.4 million – the highest viewership the broadcaster has recorded for a women’s rugby match.
The figure topped TF1’s previous record during France’s quarter-final clash against Ireland a week before (September 14), which saw an average audience of 3.6 million watch the team’s victory.
Before that, France’s opening day match against Italy on August 24 drew 3.2 million viewers on TF1, which is covering the tournament through an October 2023 tie-up.
France’s other two matches against Brazil (August 31) and South Africa (September 7) were aired by public service broadcaster France Télévisions as part of a sublicensing deal struck with TF1 earlier this year.
Under that deal, France Télévisions acquired rights in the country to broadcast 12 matches, including France’s fixtures against Brazil and South Africa, with TF1 retaining the rights to broadcast the two quarter finals, including that of the French team, the semi-final of the national team if they reached that point, and the final.
