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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Exclusive by Matt Hughes

ITV wins World Cup ratings battle with BBC in tournament’s first week

World Cup England United Kingdom Croatia Barb
England celebrate a goal scored in the 4-2 win against Croatia
England’s victory against Croatia attracted a peak TV audience of 15.4 million in the UK. Photograph: MI News/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

ITV is winning the UK television ratings battle after the first week of the World Cup. Viewing figures from Barb (the Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board) show the channel had four of the five highest TV audiences, topped by England’s 4-2 win over Croatia on Wednesday.

England’s victory in Dallas attracted a peak audience of 15.4 million on ITV and an average of more than 10 million, the highest UK TV viewing figures of the year.

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