ITV dominated 1st week of 2026 World Cup TV ratings
ITV absolutely dominated the U.K.'s TV screens during the first week of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, grabbing four of the top five most-watched matches.
England's 4-2 win over Croatia in Dallas was a real highlight, peaking at 15.4 million viewers, making it this year's biggest TV moment so far.
ITV also pulled in huge numbers for Mexico vs. South Africa and has England's third group game against Panama and any England quarter-final.
BBC online viewing and iPlayer surge
BBC saw a big boost online, with France vs. Senegal reaching 7.6 million viewers when you count laptops and mobile phones.
Scotland's long-awaited return to the World Cup drew solid numbers too, even at 2am
Plus, BBC iPlayer highlights racked up an impressive 11.6 million streams, a massive jump from Euro 2024, though the BBC have been criticized for not offering a daily highlights program on television.