Aside from unprecedented events, nothing brings the world together as an audience like sports. If you can’t be in the stands at the world’s biggest sporting events, watching on TV is the next best thing. Making plans to watch the big game (or match/fight/tournament/race) is a tradition that is shared by cultures around the world. In fact, sporting events make up the majority of the most popular TV broadcasts.
The most watched sports events in history centre around the two biggest occasions in sport: the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup. They are two truly worldwide spectacles, two prolonged festivals of sport that celebrate the best across the planet. It’s not often easy to get athletes from all over the world to compete in one tournament, but the Olympics and World Cup provide just that.
Here are the top 10 most watched sports events in history.
Rank | Event | Audience |
1. | UEFA Euro 2020 | 5.23 billion |
2. | Rio 2016 Summer Paralympics | 4.1 billion |
3. | London 2012 Summer Olympics | 3.6 billion |
4. | Rio 2016 Summer Olympics | 3.6 billion |
5. | Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup | 3.57 billion |
6. | Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics | 3.51 billion |
7. | Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics | 3.5 billion |
8. | Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics | 3.5 billion |
9. | Athens 2004 Summer Olympics | 3.5 billion |
10. | France 1998 FIFA World Cup | 3.4 billion |
