Top 10 UK viewing figures for Boxing

exactly - i bet the embassy snooker final from some year like 1998 got more viewers than all of Hatton's fights put together.

 

I think those two figures are wrong. I'm sure I read somewhere that Benn vs Mclellan did 20 million.

 

Those are incredible numbers, but even if boxing returned to terrestrial TV - which i would love, but can't see happening - fights wouldn't draw those kinds of numbers. Viewing figures now are distributed over so many more TV channels, back in the day shitty soaps like Eastenders and Corrie were able to draw around 20m viewers (usually a little under) on a fairly regular basis, i think they have less than half of that now. I'd imagine boxing would suffer the same fate.

 

Anyone got a top 10 for the last 10 years?

 

That would be interesting to see. I'd wager it would be split between Hatton and Lewis fights.

 

They wouldn't draw decent numbers for a while.

There certainly is a fair bit of interest in boxing in the mainstream, it's just that people can't be arsed reading sites like ESB or Boxrec to learn about the fighters.

Sky's coverage is so **** poor that you barely learn the fighter's names, records and city of birth before they start lamping each other.

Khan did good numbers on ITV and I'm sure that the likes of Froch would do the same. Plenty of people asked me when he was next on and what channel after the Pascal fight..... didn't really know what to say.

The come from behind KO of Taylor would really have built him up a profile amongst sports fans, instead nobody has a clue.

 

Yeah, i see what you are saying. I just think the fact that back when the fights in the opening post took place there were only 4 TV channels and so very little choice is definitely relevant. Even massive football matches generally draw under 20m viewers usually, and football is the national sport.

 

Yeah I agree with that as well.

Given that there is so much choice, and many people are more inspired by Katie Price or some other no-mark it's unlikely that sporting events are going to attract similar numbers of viewers to the late 80's & early 90's.

It must be said though that at that time many sports were in their heyday in terms of coverage. Given that there was so much demand for sports coverage it was inevitable that satellite tv would emerge and the market would saturate, as it has.

 

Yep. In a way having so much coverage is good, we get to see more and we don't miss so many mini-classics, but at the same time it has taken some of the magic away from the big sporting occasion. When i was growing up the FA Cup final always felt like such a huge occasion, the hours beforehand always seemed to drag on and on, and i'd usually watch the ridiculous amount of build up that they would have on the BBC (usually starting at 9am). Now it's 50/50 whether i can be arsed to watch it or not. In a way i miss that excitement. I do still get it with huge fights, though.

 

I'd wager you were wrong.

Tell me which of Lennox Lewis' last few fights, or which Hatton fight ever got more than the 6 million Audley Harrison's first fight got on BBC? :think

 

A fair point. I'd forgotten about Audley's little stint on the Beeb, think i repressed the memory. Actually, Froch and Calzaghe would probably have a couple in there too. Froch has had a few biggish fights on ITV and so has Calzaghe.

 

Those charity boxing matches with Ricky Gervais and Anthea Turner probably got more viewers than Lennox and Hatton put together.

 

I know what you mean!!:good

 

Bear in mind that the UK population in 1971 was about 55 million so it literally was 1 in 2 man, woman and child watched that fight..crazy numbers

The most watched TV programme in UK EVER was the 1966 World Cup final which had 32 million viewers

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-346942/The-biggest-TV-audience--now.html

 

Interesting thread. Anyone know the figures for Lewis vs Rahman on BBC? Khans Average while he was on ITV? Oh and Calzaghe vs Lacy..