World Cup sees Twitter boost, set for record audiences

This year’s football World Cup could produce record audiences, while World Cup viewers are engaging in the use of second screen activity, with 12.2 million tweets being sent during Brazil’s win over Croatia, according to figures released by a group of TV marketing associations and agencies.

According to the Platform for the European Promotion of TV (PEPPTV), World Cup broadcasters are optimistic that the July 13 final could produce an audience that matches or exceeds the 909 million who watched the Spain v Netherlands final in 2010.

According to the figures compiled by the group, a record 42.9 million Brazilians tuned in to see their team’s opening win over Croatia, while 81.3% of Croatians or watched the game. Brazil-Croatia was also the most watched opening match in at least 12 years in the UK, with 11.2 million UK viewers.

In the UK a peak of 20 million, or a 71% share, watched England v Uruguay, the highest peak audience on any channel since the 2012 London Olympics, while 27.3 million or 84.2% of viewers in Germany tuned in to watch Germany defeat the US. The French victory over Honduras scored a 56.3% audience share in France, or 15.9 million viewers, amongst whom one million saw the game on digital platforms.