Euro final to draw 250 million viewers

Official ratings already achieved by EURO 2012 matches suggests the final on Monday (AEST) will beat the 237 million average audience for Spain's title-winning victory against Germany four years ago.

"I think it's a strong performance and we're happy so far," UEFA marketing director Guy-Laurent Epstein said.

Average rating is acknowledged as the most credible audited audience figure, and counts TV viewers who watch for at least 30 minutes. Definitive worldwide figures take several months to finalise.

Epstein said UEFA expects the match to reach 350 million viewers who will see at least one minute of the action in Kiev.

EURO 2012 has provided a good return for broadcasters in more than 200 territories who paid a combined 840 million euros ($1.07 billion) for media rights. They contributed 62 per cent of UEFA's total commercial revenue of 1.345 billion euros for the 31-match tournament.

German and Italian broadcasters had a combined 50 million viewers for their national teams' semi-final on Thursday, the Italy versus England quarter-final drew more than 20 million TV viewers in each country and Poland set a national record audience with a 14.7 million average for its match against Russia.

High ratings suggest national teams continue to outperform club football, despite the increasing popularity of UEFA's Champions League competition and the English Premier League's worldwide appeal.

"The 'appointment to view' in national team football is as strong as ever," Epstein said.

Still, the European title match is a distant second to the World Cup final.

FIFA reported an "average in-home global audience" of 530.9 million people to watch Spain beat Netherlands two years ago.

The record sports event audience is the 593 million average credited to the 2008 Beijing Olympics opening ceremony. It was boosted by huge ratings in China which won't be repeated when the London Olympics opens next month with a ceremony starting when it will be 4am in Beijing.

In comparison, the Super Bowl drew a record US average of 111.3 million television viewers watching New York Giants beat New England Patriots last February.

That figure likely has been beaten almost daily at EURO 2012, with UEFA forecasting an average audience of 150 million for each match broadcast slot.

On Monday, at least 22 million viewers are expected in Italy and more than 13 million in Spain, Epstein said.