CHAMPIONS
LEAGUE
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though the opponents in Auxerre's ope
ning fixture were none other than AFC
Ajax. The match was watched by
7,164,060 viewers, giving TF1 a market
share of 33.9%.
Even so, the French can't compete with
the Dutch! 55.3% of the viewing public in
the Netherlands tuned in to Ajax's fixtu
re against Rangers FC in Glasgow. After
watching Louis van Gaal's team stride
into two consecutive finals, the Dutch
public could maybe have been forgiven
for becoming a littlé blase, but they have
responded to Ajax's improving perfor
mances by producing the highest
audience figure of the season so far.
However, not even the Dutch can match
the Scots. Despite Rangers' poor
results, 59% of the viewing public
watched the home against AFC Ajax.
South of the border, Manchester United
are attracting an ever-increasing
audience. Their home fixture against
Fenerbahce SK was watched by
9,261,000, over a million more than for
their previous home game and an incre
ase of 1.2 million compared with the
same matchday last season, when
England was represented by Blackburn
Rovers.
In Italy, the audience for matches played
by Juventus FC and AC Milan has con
solidated at over 11 million, while in
Spain, newcomers Atletico Madrid have
captured more and more of the public's
attention. Their 2-1 win in Dortmund was
watched by the biggest audience of the
season - 5,856,160 viewers.
In Germany, the television audience
increased by 800,000 on Matchday 3
and went up even further for the return
match against Atletico. Both fixtures
allowed RTL to double their average
Wednesday evening prime-time ratings.
Even bigger TV audiences are expected
as the UEFA Champions League goes
into the crucial final fixtures of the group
phase.
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