Premier League's jaw-dropping viewership crushes NFL

More information from Manchester City’s recent court battle with the Premier League is coming to light. The reigning English champions went head-to-head with the league over Associated Party Transaction (APT) laws. APTs are sponsorship deals between clubs and companies directly linked to the owners of these teams.

While the two sides will likely continue to bicker on the issue, other interesting information from the ruling has been released. One specific notable nugget does not directly have much to do with actual APT rules. Instead, it pertains to global Premier League viewership figures.

Man City official claims that Premier League games regularly reach 600 million global viewers

The English top flight is undoubtedly the most popular soccer league in the world. Nevertheless, reported viewership numbers discussed in the British court show just how dominant the division is over other leagues. World Soccer Talk reader Dave Scott helped bring attention to these figures.

“Lawsuits sometimes summarize and disclose very interesting market information,” wrote Scott. “I knew the Premier League was the most popular league in the world, but section 301 (page 85) is nonetheless jaw-dropping.”

As Scott points out, the one-paragraph section of the 175-page ruling includes some particularly interesting insight into the Premier League’s popularity. A Manchester City figure argues that each English top-flight match sees over 600 million global viewers.

“As part of this evidence, he pointed to the fact that the Premier League is the most watched football league in the world averaging over 600 million viewers per match compared to around 7.5 million viewers for LaLiga, the second most viewed league,” Scott said.

“In the 2019/20 season, the Premier League had a cumulative global audience of 3.16 billion, nearly double that of the next two most watched leagues in Europe, the Bundesliga and LaLiga.”

“The Premier League has a uniquely global fan base. In the 2019/20 season, 42 of the top 50 global audiences for European domestic league matches were for Premier League matches with the Premier League reaching the largest audiences in China, India, and the U.S. This international appeal is reflected in the fact that the Premier League’s overseas broadcast rights have consistently exceeded the combined total of the other five big European leagues.”

NFL grabs just a fraction of the Premier League viewership

Some of these specific figures may have changed a bit in recent years. For instance, the Premier League claimed that the division had 1.87 billion fans worldwide in May. League officials also declared that Premier League matches were available in 900 million homes in 189 countries across the globe.

Regardless of statistical discrepancy within the Premier League, these impressive figures still dwarf NFL viewership. The American football league reigns supreme here in the United States but sees a drastic drop in global attention. NFL regular season games averaged 17.9 million American viewers during the 2023 campaign.

The most recent Super Bowl, easily the most-watched NFL of the year, recorded a global audience of 62.5 million. This was a 10% increase over the previous season, it is just a fraction of the worldwide viewership that the Premier League regularly receives.

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