2019-20 LaLiga Santander: audiences down 15% for matches played behind closed doors due to Covid-19

The 2019-20 LaLiga Santander matches played behind closed doors due to the Covid-19 health crisis (excluding Matchdays 37 and 38 broadcast via a multiplex) posted an average audience that was over 15% lower than for the first 27 matchdays, according to data collected by News Tank Football.

The decline was recorded both by the Movistar LaLiga pay-TV channels (-16.5%) belonging to the telecommunications operator Telefonica, which broadcast nine games per matchday, and by the free DTT channel Gol owned by the Mediapro group (-11%), which broadcast one game per matchday. This is in contrast to the Bundesliga, where average audiences for matchdays played after the lockdown ended were 7% higher than for the first 25 matchdays. LaLiga changed its time slots due to the health crisis, with matches played every day of the week, some of which were broadcast at 22:00 CET.

The 2019-20 season is the first of the new cycle of domestic broadcasting rights for LaLiga Santander (2019-2022). The Movistar LaLiga channels (9 out of 10 matches) have replaced the beIN LaLiga channels (8 out of 10 matches…