The elimination of the Blues from the Rugby World Cup is not good news for TF1, but the first channel can at least rejoice in achieving the best audience of the year. 16.5 million viewers watched the short and frustrating defeat of the French XV against South Africa (29-28) on Sunday, according to figures published by Médiamétrie on Monday October 16. A peak was even measured at the end of the match at nearly 18.4 million viewers. The match’s audience share was also high, at 62% on average.
The historic record for a rugby match in France has not been beaten. The World Cup semi-final lost by the Blues to England (9-14) in 2007 brought together 18.3 million viewers on average (67.4% audience share), with a peak at more than 20 million.
The defeat of the French team against the South Africans remains a disappointment for “la Une”, broadcaster of the Rugby World Cup since 1991 (with the exception of that of 2003). The channel had been promoting the sporting event for many months. The purchase of retransmission rights, which the front page refuses to quantify, would approach sixty million euros according to The echoes. To reduce the bill, TF1 sold ten meetings to France Télévisions and eighteen others to the M6 group.
Sluggish first half
While television consumption has been disrupted by the explosion of video on demand in recent years, major international sporting events remain – along with information – rare gems still capable of bringing together a large audience live. And brands make no mistake, they are ready to spend a lot.
François Pellissier, deputy general director of TF1 in charge of sports and business, was delighted at the beginning of September with the “strong appetite from advertisers, with a fairly unprecedented level for rugby”. Advertising revenues which are falling at the right time, after a gloomy first half: the turnover of TF1 agencies contracted by 6.1% compared to the same period last year.
During this first phase, the forty meetings broadcast by the TF1, France Télévisions and M6 groups generated a total of 104.9 million euros in gross advertising revenue according to Kantar Media, an average of 2.6 million euros. euros per meeting. A result which still remains lower than that of the Football World Cup in 2022: the sixteen group matches then generated 4.7 million euros in gross revenue on average.
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