Following the release of all the viewing figures for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, it has been calculated that 161 million viewers watched the contest.
Although 161 million is significantly smaller than 2021’s 183 million, and far smaller than the likes of 2016’s 204 million, it has to be pointed out that the contest was not broadcast in Russia, and therefore missed out on a significant section of it’s usual audience. Additionally, due to the fact it was incredibly hard to calculate the figures in Ukraine, due to the ongoing invasion, Ukraine’s numbers were not included in the 161 million figure. In Russia and Ukraine, 29 million people watched the 2021 contest, meaning that 2022 would’ve reached 190 million viewers, if things had gone differently, which is up 7 million viewers on last year.
Elsewhere, there were huge gains on 2021. In the United Kingdom, 8.9 million people tuned in for the Grand Final, up on 20% from 2021’s 7.4 million – a huge win for live linear television, in the current age, where all other viewing figures are declining into an oblivion. To put that into comparison, the UK’s biggest ratings winner is Strictly Come Dancing, where last year, the final was watched by 11 million viewers. Eurovision 2022 was only 2 million viewers behind this colossal figure.
Another particularly strong showing was from Italy, who received their highest viewing figures for Eurovision ever, after a heavily renewed interest in the contest following their 2021 win. 6.6 million viewers tuned into Eurovision 2022 in Italy, up 53% on 2021, with a share of 41.9% of the TV audience. Let’s hope that the Italian public’s renewed interest in Eurovision remains in future years!
Like always, the winners of the audience share statistic was Iceland, with 96.4% of the TV audience tuning in. While this happens every year, so is relatively unsurprising, it’s still a big win for the Contest.
We couldn’t be happier to see the success of the Eurovision Song Contest across all our Members’ channels and on our digital platforms this year. Once again, we have seen the enormous popularity of the Contest among young audiences, some of whom are discovering the event for the first time. The Eurovision Song Contest truly has global appeal demonstrated by the millions watching in every territory on earth and millions more interacting on social media.
Martin Österdahl, Executive Supervisor – Eurovision Song Contest
Overall, 2022 was a great win for viewing figures, across the board, keeping a strong defence in the age of streaming, for live family television. These figures prove that, yes, Eurovision is popular and it’s here to stay.
