TV advertising in Europe - statistics & facts

Television remains a highly effective advertising platform as popular shows, live music, or sports broadcasts can draw millions of potential customers to the screen. In Europe, where advertising activities vary greatly depending on the country, TV advertising has largely maintained its dominant position in the marketing mix despite cord-cutting trends and the digitalization of video content. Data also shows that the number of TV viewers in Europe keeps growing every year, encouraging companies to compete for precious airtime to promote their products and services. In 2021, TV ad spend in Western Europe amounted to 27.5 billion U.S. dollars, marking an annual boost of nearly 15 percent. Meanwhile, a swift upswing in spending is also forecast for Central and Eastern Europe, where expenditures have already surpassed pre-pandemic levels.

Television advertising trends

Looking at five of the largest television advertising markets in Europe, namely the UK, Germany, France, Spain, and Italy, one will notice several common threads. For instance, television advertising revenue in the UK dropped from 3.65 billion to 3.15 billion British pounds following the onset of the pandemic in 2020. This 13-percent dip was almost matched by Germany and France, where TV ad revenues declined by 14 and 11 percent, respectively. Data also indicates that revenues had fluctuated for several years across most Western European countries before the pandemic. Today, the industry is slowly bouncing back from a turbulent 2020, and in Italy, spending on TV commercials is even forecast to reach a six-year high in 2022. Another trend that will become even more pronounced in the future is the increased focus on online TV advertising as more viewers opt for non-linear video entertainment options.

Who are the top television advertising spenders and beneficiaries?

The European advertising landscape is sprinkled with regional and international companies of all sizes pushing the buttons in their respective markets. In 2020, for example, TF1 group was the top TV group based on ad revenue in France, with its channels drawing more than 1.25 billion euros in ad investments that year. Meanwhile, Mediaset remained the broadcaster with the highest TV ad revenue in Italy after reporting higher revenues than all its competitors combined. But even though data showed that there is no single conglomerate holding a monopoly over the scene, it is also true that some well-established players are expanding their pan-European influence. Sky, for example, Europe’s largest television Group, was the most-viewed TV advertiser in the UK in 2020. The following year, one of Sky’s pay TV sports channels ranked among the top 10 channels based on advertising revenue in Germany, while Sky Media also reported the third-largest TV ad spend in Italy.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Michele Majidi, Jan 6, 2023

Key insights

TV advertising revenue worldwide
159bn USD
TV ad spend in Western Europe
28.4bn USD
TV ad spend in Central and Eastern Europe
8.61bn USD
Get more insights

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