Over the Christmas period, 2.6 million fans tuned in to Gallagher Premiership Rugby, eclipsing last season’s Festive Fixtures then-record total of 1.8 million, according to Barb figures.Round 8 recorded the highest ever average audience on TNT Sports with cumulative peak audiences increasing by 44 per cent across the two festive rounds.Big Game 16, which saw hosts Harlequins and Leicester Tigers play out a 34-34 draw, was a full house with all 80,634 available seats filled for the showcase match at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham in Round 9. The traditional Christmas clash attracted a 31 per cent higher average audience than last season’s total, growing 14 per cent on ITV and 63 per cent on TNT Sports.At the same stage as last season through ten rounds, the cumulative Premiership Rugby audience on TNT Sports is 44 per cent higher, average audience is up 11% and the average audience across the top two rating fixtures has increased by 27 per cent.Six fixtures were completely sold-out over the two festive rounds. Bath Rugby, Exeter Chiefs, Gloucester Rugby, Northampton Saints, Saracens all enjoyed a bumper home crowd with Harlequins also packing out Allianz Stadium.Round 9 saw a season-high occupancy of 95 per cent.Stadum occupancy is also significantly higher year-on-year, averaging at 81 per cent – an increase of ten percentage points (71 per cent) on the equivalent stage last season with large crowds forecast to continue during The Run-In as the play-off race continues to heat up.Simon Massie-Taylor, Premiership Rugby CEO, said: “We are thrilled that the Festive Fixtures period has become an iconic part of the Gallagher Premiership Rugby season and is now a staple for many rugby-supporting families over the holiday season. We are delighted to see both attendances and TV ratings soaring for these matches and on such a strong growth trajectory over the last few seasons. We have seen some of the sensational rugby on the pitch and a number of unpredicted results in recent weeks. We know fans cannot wait to watch the drama unfold during The Run-In and into the knockout stages of the season.”As the Gallagher Premiership 2024/25 now passes the halfway stage, the race for the top four spots is shaping up to, with just ten points separating high-flying Bristol Bears in second place with defending champions Northampton Saints in eighth.
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