2026 World Cup/play-offs: best audience since Euro 2024 for Italy-Northern Ireland on Rai (10.03 million)

Italy - Northern Ireland (2-0), semi-final of the 2026 World Cup European play-off, drew an average of 10.03 million viewers on the public TV channel Rai 1 on Thursday 26/03/2026 (kick-off at 20:45 CET), according to data from audience measurement institute Auditel.

This figure represented an audience share of 43.8%. This is the highest audience for an Italy match since Euro 2024. Italy will face Bosnia-Herzegovina in the play-off final on Tuesday 31/03/2026 (kick-off at 20:45 CET).

Italy - Norway (1-4), the Italian national team's eighth qualifying game for the 2026 World Cup (Group I), drew an average of 7.52 million viewers on Rai 1 on Sunday 16/11/2025 (kick-off at 20:45 CET), according to Auditel. Audience share: 34.3%.

• The Italian public broadcasting group Rai held the exclusive broadcasting rights to the Italian national team's matches over the 2018-2022 cycle, and has extended these rights for an undisclosed period.