Over one million fans have turned up to BKT United Rugby Championship games in just 11 rounds which is the fastest pace ever for the league to break that attendance barrier.
It’s just one of multiple new benchmarks set by the league this season and comes just days after the single-round attendance record was set for the fourth time in little over a year with confirmation that over 160,780 fans turned up across Round 9.
Since the BKT URC kicked off in 2021, the one million fan mark has been reached faster each season – two years ago it occurred Round 14 and last season it was Round 12, before taking just 11 rounds this time around.
With seven rounds left to play, 15 of the league’s 16 clubs are involved in the battle to reach the Play-Offs and that appeal has led to yet more growth across the BKT URC’s attendance, broadcast and social audience figures.
In Stadium
In addition to the new single-round record, the average attendance so far is up 14% on this point last season (and 20% compared to 2022/23). Clubs across the league are growing their footfall with big events, bringing in new cohorts of fans, backed up by popular match-day experiences that goes beyond the thrilling contests, which in themselves mean more than ever before.
On Screen
Already the single-round record for the biggest broadcast audience in the BKT URC has been broken this season with 3.5million tuning in during Round 3 and an overall increase of 2% which is expected to rise once outstanding fixtures are completed. This follows on from the huge audiences that have grown since 2021 where over 120 million watched the drama unfold in the first three seasons.
On Social
Having surpassed one million followers on the league’s social media channels in the summer of 2023, the BKT URC’s overall following across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube and X now stands at 1.5million which is a 12% increase since the season began – making it the fastest growing club rugby league in the world.
The league’s YouTube channel has doubled its subscribers in the past year and is about to pass 200,000 while highlight views are up 34% on last season which also drew 40.6million views last season.
On the Pitch
Already this season close to half of games (45.3%) played have been decided by seven points or less. This follows on from the first three seasons where the BKT URC has celebrated three different champions from three different countries.
As of yet the No 1 ranked team has yet to claim the trophy due to the unpredictable nature of the new Playoff format where away wins have become more common. In addition, the 2023/24 season was the most competitive in the league’s history with 11 of the 16 teams competing to reach the Play-Offs in the final round of the campaign.
Record Breaking Attendances:
Round 9 – Attendance by fixture
Munster v Leinster: 26,267
DHL Stormers v Hollywoodbets Sharks: 46,002
Edinburgh v Glasgow Warriors: 40,063
Zebre Parma v Benetton: 5,000
Connacht v Ulster: 6,217
Cardiff v Ospreys: 12,125
Scarlets v Dragons RFC: 7,605
Vodacom Bulls v Emirates Lions: 17,501
Total attendance: 160,780
Attendances
Overall: 1.69million fans (+ 3%)
Avg: 11.2k per game
Broadcast
Total Audience: 47.7million (+ 27%)
Avg: 2.39m viewers per round
Record Round: 3.4m (Round 11)
Play-Off Audience: 4.7m
Further Reading for Sport for Business members: Qatar Airways on Board with United Rugby Championship
SPORT FOR BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE
This is rock solid growth in the tournament across all the key metrics, at a time when competition for attention has never been greater.
WHAT’S UP NEXT?
The next round of the Championship takes place this weekend with all four Irish provinces at home against Benetton, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Scarlets.
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