BBC’s Gary Lineker Toasts “Staggering” TV Audience For England Match

BBC presenter Gary Lineker has revelled in the audience figures for England’s quarter-final match against Switzerland, in the Euros 2024 football tournament.

Lineker shared on X (formerly Twitter) that almost 17million viewers tuned in on linear channel BBC One to watch a tightly fought contest culminating in a 1-1 draw before England came through on penalties in the final minutes.

Former player turned presenter Lineker wrote:

“Staggering viewing figures for last night’s England game: a peak audience (penalties obvs) of almost 17million on @BBCOne and 8.9m online (@BBCiPlayer and BBC website). A combined total of nearly 26m. And @England won. What a time to be alive.”

The BBC reported that an average audience of 13.6million tuned in – a 77% share of all those watching TV that evening.

These figures are very much in the ballpark for UK TV audiences throughout the competition so far. Three weeks ago, when they began their Euros campaign against Serbia on the BBC, the audience reached a peak of 15million.

Then, when England played Denmark the same week, the audience topped 13.1million, also on the BBC. The UK’s other main broadcaster ITV got to air the final group game for England against Slovenia, with an audience peaking at 15.4million.

Staying on ITV for the last 16 knockout match against Slovakia last weekend, the audience reached 18.4million.

England will play the Netherlands in the semi-final on Wednesday at 2000 BST, a match to be aired on ITV. Should the England team proceed to next Sunday’s final, the match will be aired both on BBC and ITV.

England made the final back in 2021, a match watched by 31million across the two channels.