A win for terrestrial Television: Nottingham Forest’s FA Cup run attracts more viewers than Carabao Cup final

The magic of the FA Cup is still very much alive and kicking in English football, and that has been shown by the latest viewing figures.

Liverpool lifted the Carabao Cup on Sunday, beating Chelsea on penalties after an enthralling match somehow ended scoreless, and the competition were quick to announce that the peak viewership stood at over 4 million, which was the highest of the 2021/22 season for host station Sky Sports.

A #CarabaoCupFinal to remember!

@SkyFootball #EFL | #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/V90qOjnLzq

— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) March 2, 2022

However, figures obtained by 101 show that it was far from the most viewed game of the season when all platforms are taken into consideration.

In fact, the crown remains firmly on the head of terrestrial TV channels BBC and ITV, who provide coverage of the FA Cup, England’s oldest competition.

Giantkillings still sell

And, if one thing remains true, it is that giant killings and the romance of the cup still attract viewers.

Championship Nottingham Forest, who have knocked out both Arsenal and Leicester City consecutively on their way to the fifth round, had a higher peak and average viewership than the Carabao Cup final.

The clash with Arsenal, broadcast on ITV 1, attracted a peak viewership of 5.21 million people, while it held an average of 3.58 million people for the duration of the 90 minutes as they completed a 1-0 upset thanks to a late Lewis Grabban goal.

Lewis Grabban delivers in the big moments @NFFC #EmiratesFACup pic.twitter.com/GpRlraxden

— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) January 9, 2022

Meanwhile, during the BBC’s coverage of their 4-1 demolition of current cup-holders Leicester City in the fourth round, the viewership peaked at 4.76 million, while the game held an average audience of 3.58 million viewers. Impressive stuff from a Championship side.

As football increasingly moves away from terrestrial TV, these numbers are likely to drop with them. Forest’s run could be one of the last of it’s kind.