BBC smashes digital records as 2.3m watch England v Wales EURO clash

BBC Online attracted record breaking digital figures for the home nations EURO 2016 clash between England and Wales Thursday with 2.3m unique browsers watching online — more than double the previous record — while a peak audience of 9.3m million people (73% share) tuned in on BBC One.

An all-time high audience of 14.6m unique global browsers visited the BBC Sport website on Thursday to follow coverage of EURO 2016, including Northern Ireland’s match against Ukraine. This breaks the previous record of 13.6m browsers set on the final day of the 2015-16 Premier League season.

Barbara Slater, Director of BBC Sport, said: “We are delighted that the BBC’s digital offering again allowed so many people to share in this huge game. Our enhanced service, in addition to our first class TV and radio coverage, puts audiences at the very heart of the EURO 2016 action wherever they are, allowing them to follow the action however they wish. The BBC has pioneered live digital event coverage from London 2012 Olympics to Glastonbury, and our record breaking figures highlight its increasing importance to audiences.

EURO 2016 coverage on the BBC continues across TV, radio and online until 10 July.

There were over 1.25 million selections of England’s team ahead of the opening match against Russia via the BBC Sport team selector. Almost 280,000 users have played the BBC Sport EURO 2016 predictor game, setting up over 30,000 personalised leagues, with users having the opportunity to play against BBC talent including Alan Shearer. 11.8m unique UK daily browsers visited BBC Sport online Thursday, which also beat the previous UK best of 10.2 million, also set on the final day of the Premier League season.