England’s EURO Success Sets New Records

Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses attracted a peak audience of 7.4 million viewers on the BBC for their EURO 2025 quarter-final win over Sweden on penalties. ITV hope to do even better tonight for their semi-final against Italy.

The BBC numbers tell a story even the most optimistic couldn’t have scripted, a success to makes television executives reach for the good champagne and start drafting press releases patting themselves on the back.

But with interest growing and viewing figures rising steadily as the tournament progresses, ITV now expect more than 8 million to tune in for the latest instalment tonight.

Thursday’s shootout drama delivered a commanding 65% share – comfortably eclipsing anything we’d seen at Euro 2025 to date.

Also intriguing is how these figures stack up against the men’s Euro 2024, where England’s semi-final against the Netherlands drew 21.6 million on ITV, while the final defeat to Spain attracted 24.2 million. The gap is narrowing.

The digital numbers tell an equally compelling story. Nearly three million online streams across iPlayer and BBC Sport’s website, with 8.3 million views on the live text page.

The product certainly delivered. Two-nil down to Sweden, the defending champions faced elimination, and then up stepped Lucy Bronze – first with a goal that sparked the epic comeback, then with a penalty during the shootout.

BBC director of Sport, Alex Kay-Jelski’s post-match comments capture the moment perfectly: “I was biting my nails on the sofa with the rest of the fans. What a win for the Lionesses!”

This is no longer a tournament the BBC covers out of obligation. It’s prime-time content that delivers big audiences and keeps them engaged. The semi-final against Italy in Geneva represents more than just another fixture – it’s an opportunity to further cement women’s football’s position in the mainstream sporting landscape. The numbers suggest the audience will be there.

Insideworldfootball.com