Germany Euro 2008 win nets BBC One 4.5m viewers

by Darren Davidson, Brand Republic 09-Jun-08, 11:05

LONDON - BBC One's live coverage of Germany's 2-0 win over neighbours Poland netted the biggest audience of the opening Euro 2008 matches over the weekend with 4.5m viewers tuning in, according to unofficial overnight figures.

The match, which failed to end Germany's 75-year record of triumphing over Poland, was watched by a 21.2% share of the audience between 7.30pm-10pm last night.

Earlier in the evening, BBC One's live coverage of Croatia's 1-0 win over joint tournament hosts Austria, drew 3m viewers and a 23.4% share of the audience, in the 4.40pm-7pm slot.

In the world of Formula 1 racing, ITV1 pulled in 3.9m viewers for its live coverage of the Canadian grand prix. British contender Lewis Hamilton failed to win a second consecutive race when he crashed into world champion Kimi Raikkonen in the pitlane.

The race began with Hamilton in pole position, but ended with him being docked 10 places by FIA on the grid for the next grand prix in France, as a penalty for his crash. It drew a 26% share of the audience between 5.05pm-8pm.

On Saturday, the opening game of Euro 2008, which saw joint hosts Switzerland lose 1-0 to the Czech Republic, earned BBC One 3.5m viewers and a 20.4% share of the audience between 4.30pm-7pm.

Later in the evening, ITV1's live coverage of Portugal's 2-0 win over Turkey had 4m viewers and a 27% share of the audience between 7.15pm-10pm.