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Millions of Australians turned on their TVs to watch the Matildas take on France in Saturday's World Cup quarterfinal.
Key points:
- Seven West Media has reported an estimated average audience during the Matildas quarter final of 4.17 million people
- The Matildas match against Denmark attracted an audience of 3.6 million
- The Matildas will next take on England in the World Cup semifinals
New figures from Seven West Media show an estimated average audience during the game of 4.17 million — making it the number one television event of 2023 so far.
There were 3.69 million viewers tuned in to watch the match live on broadcast TV.
A further 472,000 viewers watched the game on Seven's streaming platform 7plus — making it the biggest streaming event ever seen in Australia.
According to preliminary, non-adjusted figures from ratings agency OzTAM, the game peaked at 4.43 million viewers on broadcast and dominated its broadcast timeslot.
These figures do not capture out-of-home viewers at clubs, pubs, sporting venues and multiple live site broadcasts set up for the games.
The official OzTAM broadcast audience numbers released also don't take into account the fact the game ran into overtime by half an hour.
The adjusted audience numbers will be released on Tuesday, which means the viewership number could climb even higher.
Younger viewers dominated the audience, with the game capturing 91.2 per cent of commercial audience share for those aged 16 to 39.
The viewership for the Matildas vs France match surpassed the audience of any AFL or NRL grand final, as well as any State of Origin match.
The Matildas' quarterfinal match against Denmark last week broke records to become the highest viewed television event of 2023, with 3.6 million views.
But these new numbers crush that already massive audience.
Seven West media reports their coverage of the FIFA Women's World Cup has reached 11.9 million broadcast viewers plus another 2.3 million on their streaming app so far.
"Australia partied yesterday as the Matildas did us proud," Seven’s managing director Melbourne and network head of sport, Lewis Martin, said.
"The FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 has brought Australia together in a way we haven’t seen for years. We can’t wait for Wednesday. Go Matildas!"
Game beamed to multiple Australia stadiums
It's important to note the eye-watering broadcast audience doesn't take into account the people who watched the game as it beamed into stadiums around the country.
In an unprecedented move, the AFL allowed the match to be broadcast into the MCG before Saturday's Blues/Demons match.
An estimated 70,000 spectators attended the MCG for last night's AFL game.
As the Matilda's game went overtime, the MCG screens had to be turned off when the AFL game started.
Carlton and Melbourne fans booed in unison as it was switched off, as hundreds left their seats to gather around the TVs under the stands.
The Sydney Cricket Ground got in on the action, broadcasting the Matilda's match after the Sydney Swans v Gold Coast game yesterday.
The Matilda's match was also broadcast at Rod Laver Arena, outside Optus Stadium and at three live sites in Sydney Olympic Park.
This is in addition to the live sites that have been set up in Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and Hobart.
When do the Matildas play next?
This Wednesday, August 16.
The Matildas will face off against England in a semifinal match at Stadium Australia, Sydney/Gadigal.
They'll kick-off at:
- 8pm AEST — ACT, NSW, Queensland, Tasmania and Victoria
- 7:30pm ACST — Northern Territory, South Australia
- 6pm AWST — Western Australia
Where can I watch the Matildas semifinal?
It's being broadcast on Channel Seven and Optus Sport.
ABC Sport is broadcasting live, uninterrupted and commercial-free coverage every day of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup on the ABC Listen App.
We'll also be blogging the game live here on the ABC News website.