The German national soccer team fails with a bang - and with it the television "workhorse". It will be difficult for the broadcasting TV stations ARD, ZDF and MagentaTV to continue to inspire viewers in the last two weeks of the World Cup.
A soccer World Cup as a niche event on TV? The controversial Winter World Cup in Qatar could herald a remarkable turning point in Germany. For the first time ever, a men's final doesn't seem to be a sure-fire success on German TV, the odds don't even come close to meeting expectations, and nothing has changed since the start of the round of 16.
The knockout game on Saturday evening between Argentina and Australia (2-1) gave the first 4.71 million football fans (MA: 18.9 percent) a moderate rate at prime time. The Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi sometimes played big. While in other countries the desert World Cup in winter brings a great response, fans in Germany give the tournament the cold shoulder.
Even other smaller sports can benefit from this. In terms of the quota on Saturday in the first, winter sports were not far removed from the World Cup in the Persian Gulf. The ARD recorded with the Biathlon World Cup (2.86 million/MA: 26.5 percent or 2.04/28.0), the Cross-Country World Cup (1.98/19.4) and the Luge World Cup ( 1.70/20.6) four other sports broadcasts in the top ten.
The preliminary round of four-time world champion Germany could prove to be a huge burden for ARD and ZDF, but also for the MagentaTV streaming service (broadcasts all 64 World Cup games). "The performances and behavior of the DFB-Elf in recent times also seem to play an important role in the interest of the spectators. However, we hope that this will improve again in the coming months with a view to UEFA EURO 2024 in Germany "said ARD sports coordinator Axel Balkausky. Balkausky emphasized that the "continuous decline" in the number of spectators at international matches of the German men's national soccer team cannot be denied.
So it is remarkable that the European Championship final of the German soccer players with 17.9 million (MA: 64.8 percent) on July 31st is still the most watched broadcast in 2022. The 4:2 against Costa Rica and the associated knockout. of the German team in the group phase "only" lured 17.43 million in front of the TV sets (MA: 53.7 percent).
There is hardly any improvement in sight. In the past, World Cup games without German participation were also readily watched by viewers, and ratings in the tens of millions were also common here. In 2022 it will be different. The ranges are well behind the numbers of the last World Cup tournaments. Qatar's World Cup games in Germany don't have the quality of a street sweeper. It is highly doubtful whether this will change in the next two weeks.
