Germany is tuning into the Rugby World Cup in unbelievable numbers and every way you look at it, this year’s Rugby World Cup is an unqualified success.
That’s the claim that was made at the World Cup organiser’s press conference where the explosion in interest in the World Cup was confirmed and some exceptionally interesting numbers were thrown around that show so much interest in the game at the moment.
While French crowds have been impressive, the television and online numbers also look good, with tournament organisers giving themselves a slap on the back for their success thus far.
With 24 of the 48 games having being played, tournament director Michel Poussau released some of the more interesting figures for the tournament, claiming it to be on track to be the “biggest and best” World Cup ever.
This fan is everyone watching #URUvNAM#RWC2023 pic.twitter.com/f1C9WgVbdv
— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) September 27, 2023
“We have now reached the middle of the competition with 24 games out of 48 having been played. The 24 games have proved this Rugby World Cup is already becoming the best and the biggest Rugby World Cup ever.
“We have had more than one million fans in our nine venues. In terms of TV audiences, the numbers keep growing. We have had more than one hundred million viewers in France, which is more than the whole of Rugby World Cup 2019.
“We are attracting more and more new fans to rugby with more than 1.1 million new followers on various social platforms which is amazing. That has generated more than 600 million views of our official content. These numbers are amazing and very important for us as it’s in line with our ambition to always try to grow the game.
“Looking ahead we have got some more amazing rugby ahead off us with eight more games this week. We will have history in the making with a game between two South American teams for the first time when Chile plays Argentina in Nantes on Saturday, a definite milestone for rugby in South America and the game overall.
“We talked three weeks ago at the opening media conference about this tournament marking the birthday party for rugby’s 200th birthday. It’s really important at this moment in time that we take the step-changes that are needed to take the game forward for the next 200 years and create a sustainable future for those teams that are looking to break through.”
Irish fans singing Zombie in unison during the Rugby World Cup in France. pic.twitter.com/yf9Gw35C3j
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) September 25, 2023
FAN ZONES A HIT
France 2023 chairman Jacques Rivoal took it further, saying the tournament had passed 1-million fans in stadiums.
“It is already an exceptional Rugby World Cup when you compare with the 2015 edition in England and 2019 in Japan. We have already passed one million fans in the stadiums, which are full, and not just for the big games.
"For example, there were 33 000 for Georgia-Portugal in Toulouse, 25 000 for Italy-Uruguay in Nice, on a Wednesday at 17:45 in the rain. The fan zones have also been a success, with more than 770 000 fans attending.
“In the official stores, we have seen a rush on France team shirts. In two weeks, we have sold more of them than the number of Japan shirts sold in the whole tournament in 2019. The megastores have also seen an explosion in sales, 30 per cent up on initial objectives in Paris and Marseille.
“On television, in France we had an audience of 11.5 million for France-Uruguay, which is 60 per cent more than the best audience during the Six Nations – or a 52.7 per cent share of the audience. We then had 10.7 million for France-Namibia, or a 47.6 per cent audience share. But there were also 4 million French viewers for Ireland-Tonga and England-Japan, while the biggest hit [outside of a France match] was more than 6.74 million for South Africa-Ireland.
“We are also beating records abroad. Japan has beaten its record audience from 2019. In Germany, which is not recognised as a rugby country, they had 3.5 million watching the opening match, which is more than the whole tournament in 2019.”
There's no better sound for the Scotland fans 🎶 #RWC2023 | #SCOvTGA | @Scotlandteam pic.twitter.com/xRwOBR5I7w
— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) September 24, 2023