The latest broadcast report for the BKT United Rugby Championship shows that over 3.4 million viewers tuned into Round 11 in February to set another new audience record for the league.
With close to 3 million setting the previous high mark in R8, nearly half a million more (3,429,000) watched the action from R11, which took place during a break week during the Six Nations.
The BKT URC is on a steady pace to surpass its overall total audience of 37.4 million from last season, and the record number from R11 is in keeping with the growth in viewership experienced during this campaign.
Twelve of the 15 rounds reported on by Neilsen have recorded audiences of over 2 million per round, while three of those rounds have topped 3 million viewers.
By comparison, the highest audience of the 2022/23 season was around 2.5million viewers and already seven rounds have delivered more than that figure in the current season.
“The BKT URC is becoming must-see TV for rugby fans,” said Martin Anayi, CEO of United Rugby Championship.
“When we introduced the new format in 2021, we believed the league needed more jeopardy and unpredictability. The final round of the regular season was proof that our drama-by-design approach was delivering when every spot was up for grabs and four teams were vying to finish first in the table.”
“Not only have fans been hooked by the every-game counts appeal of the BKT URC, but we’ve had incredible buy-in and support from our broadcast partners in our core markets right across the UK, Ireland, South Africa and Italy. Their dedication to telling key stories and innovating their coverage plays such an important role in keeping audiences informed and engaged.”
Each round of the BKT United Rugby Championship is broadcast live on the following broadcasters in its core markets: RTÉ, TG4, Premier Sports, and URC.tv (Republic of Ireland); BBC Northern Ireland, BBC Wales, S4C, Sky Italia (Italy), SuperSport (South Africa), and FloRugby (USA).
The two semi-finals take place this weekend, with the optimum result for Irish fans being a Munster vs Leinster final coming down the tracks.
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