Champions League final viewers in the U.S. 2016-2022

The Champions League may be Europe's premier domestic soccer competition, but this does not stop viewers tuning in across the Atlantic in the United States. The 2022 final between Liverpool and Real Madrid drew in an American audience of 2.76 million viewers, representing a 23 percent increase on the previous year's figures.

European giants

Real Madrid's success in 2022 marked the 14th time that Los Blancos have taken home the prestigious Champions League trophy. Their closest rivals in terms of number of Champions League titles are AC Milan, who have taken the title a total of seven times. However, while Real Madrid have become European champions five times since 2013, AC Milan's last title came back in the 2006-07 season. In that year, they beat Liverpool 2-1 in the final held in Athens, with both goals coming from Filippo Inzaghi. The legendary Italian forward features ninth on the list of players with the most goals in the Champions League. Topping this list are two modern legends of the game - Lionel Messi, who has won the European Cup four times with Barcelona, and Cristiano Ronaldo, who has lifted the trophy once with Manchester United, as well as four times with Real Madrid.

Big money in the Champions League

Thanks to the global appeal of the Champions League, it is no surprise that significant money is invested by television providers to secure the rights for this competition. Revenue from broadcasting rights for the Champions League hit almost 2.4 billion euros in the 2020/21 season and a further 400 million euros was generated through commercial rights. As a result, the total revenue of the Champions League reached almost 2.8 billion euros in the 2020/21 season, a significant increase from the one billion euros of revenue generated a decade earlier.