UK TV ratings: 24m watched England defeat to Spain, miss out on Italy final three years ago

The thrilling Euro 2024 final between England and Spain was watched by around 24 million viewers last night, second only to the England-Italy final three years ago.

Coverage on both the BBC and ITV averaged around 15 million viewers over the course of the hour, just before the semi-final win over the Netherlands.

According to Barb’s data provided by Nights.television, the game was watched by 11.3 million on BBC One and a further 3.7 million on ITV, a share of just under 75% of the total audience. In all likelihood, the ratings were higher as Barb did not take into account pub viewing.

The broadcast was the most watched so far this year, but was behind England’s previous final in 2021 against Italy, which had a peak of 31 million. Other high-rated TV events in the recent past include the funerals of Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth II, and Boris Johnson’s speeches on Covid-19.

Last night brought another disappointment for Gareth Southgate’s troubled England side, who lost 2-1, with Mikel Oyarzabal scoring the decisive goal just four minutes from time.

Spain were the better team throughout the tournament and their win was well deserved. England captain and talisman Harry Kane was substituted again and pictures of him looking forlorn near the winner’s trophy were circulating on social media last night.