Cup final pulls record audience
There were also 90,000 lucky folks in Wembley Stadium
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Wednesday, 23, May 2007 11:55
Saturday's FA Cup final received a peak audience of nearly 13 million people, making it the most watched sporting event of 2007 so far.
A combined peak viewing figure of 12.9 million, screened jointly by BBC1 and Sky Sports 1, saw Chelsea lift the trophy after extra-time.
The game was contested by the top two sides in the Premiership this season, the Blues meeting league champions Manchester United, but the match itself was widely criticised for being a dull stalemate between two fatigued sides.
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba scored the only goal of the game after 116 minutes to win the trophy for the west London outfit in the first final to be played at the new Wembley Stadium since it was rebuilt.
But despite criticism from all quarters about the quality of the football, FA chief executive Brian Barwick said the viewing figures proved that the yearly cup final remained an occasion that is ingrained in the national psyche.
"There are few events that can capture and unite a nation quite like the FA Cup final and the audience figures for Saturday proved that once again," he said.
The audience at the final whistle, according to BBC figures was 11.8 million, meaning it beat the previous high for a sporting event in 2007 set by the Champions League semi-final, second leg between Chelsea and Liverpool, which was screened on May 1st by ITV.
The BBC's coverage of this year's FA Cup final was watched by an average audience of 9.6 million, which also meant it beat last year's average audience of nine million that saw Liverpool beat West Ham United on penalties after a thrilling 3-3 draw.
None of the figures take into account the viewing public in pubs and clubs across the country, which approximate statistics show could have been as much as 30 million people in total.