2026 World Cup Qualifiers: over 8.2 million viewers for Germany - Northern Ireland on RTL

Germany - Northern Ireland (3-1), Germany's second qualifying match for the 2026 World Cup (Group A), drew an average of 8.26 million viewers in the first half and 8.74 million in the second half on the private free-to-air channel RTL (RTL Deutschland) on Sunday 07/09/2025 (kick-off at 20:45 CET), according to figures from the audience measurement institute AGF.

These figures represented audience shares of 33% in the first half and 40.9% in the second.

Slovakia - Germany (2-0), Germany's first 2026 World Cup qualifier, drew an average of 7.47 million viewers on the German public TV channel Das Erste (ARD) on Thursday 04/09/2025 (kick-off at 20:45 CET), according to AGF. Audience share: 35.1%.

Germany: RTL, ARD & ZDF broadcasters of German national team matches over the 2022-2028 cycle

RTL Founded: 1984 Headquarters: Köln (GER) Sector: television (cable, satellite, terrestrial), radio, Internet CEO: Thomas Rabé Shareholding: owned by the RTL group (which is 75% owned by… acquired the exclusive live broadcasting rights in Germany for half of the German national team's matches…