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The Viewing Figures For Last Week's Football & Rugby Internationals Are Very Interesting

The Viewing Figures For Last Week's Football & Rugby Internationals Are Very Interesting
Gary Connaughton
By Gary Connaughton
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We've had quite the few days in Irish sporting terms.

It all began on Thursday night, when Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal rocked up to the Aviva Stadium for their World Cup qualifier against Ireland, with Stephen Kenny's side playing out a credible 0-0 draw.

Two days later, the same venue hosted the autumn test between Ireland and New Zealand. That one produced one of the more memorable sporting occasions in this country in recent memory, with Andy Farrell's side storming to a 29-20 victory and playing some scintillating rugby along the way.

The weekend would then be rounded off with Ireland's 3-0 win over Luxembourg last night.

All of those games were shown on RTÉ, with the national broadcaster now releasing the viewing figures for the events. They certainly make for interesting reading.

Football vs Rugby Viewing Figures

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Thursday's night football international against Portugal drew an average audience of 677,000, a 66% share of the total viewing audience. The numbers peaked at 905,000 viewers as the game drew to a close.

The win over the All Blacks brought in very numbers, with an average viewership of 686,000 and a peak of 854,000. That was a 49% share of those watching television at the time.

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As for the game against Luxembourg, it had an average audience of 499,000 and a peak of 646,000.

Football traditionally brings in a larger audience than rugby, but it is interesting to see that the Portugal game had arguably better numbers than the win over the All Blacks a couple of days later.

The visit of New Zealand to Dublin always brings with it a massive sense of occasion, while Stephen Kenny's side were facing into a game that had few tangible consequences. Of course, the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo on the pitch likely played a part in many tuning into the game.

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SEE ALSO: Ranking All Of Ireland's Players From The World Cup Qualifying Campaign

 

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