Australian cricket sets a new attendance record, breaks past records

Australian cricket has set a new attendance record of 2.4 million views. The new record includes the views of ICC Men’s T20 World Cup (2022), W/BBL, and Men’s and Women’s international fixtures. The result surpassed the old record of 2,349,326, which was set in the Ashes season of 2017/18.

Significantly, there was also an increase in the broadcast and streaming viewing figures as well. According to multiple reports, there was a total cumulative audience of 44.45 million, consuming 238.72 million viewer hours of coverage throughout the 2022/23 season.

The Big Bash League (BBL) has witnessed a whopping 11 per cent increase in viewership across all platforms. With such a rise in attendance, the BBL became Australia’s most-watched league in any sport on an average audience per game basis. The summit clash between the Perth Scorchers and Brisbane Heat was watched by an average audience of over 1.3 million, which is 30 per cent more than the previous year’s decider.

Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley expressed his delight after Australia cricket set a new attendance record. 

“Following two challenging seasons due to the pandemic, we are absolutely thrilled that more fans have attended cricket matches this season than ever before. This record-breaking 2022/23 season reflects the support for the T20 World Cup, the performances of the Australian women’s and men’s teams and the popularity of the Big Bash Leagues," Hockley said in a statement.

The 2022 T20I World Cup and Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) were the most watched tournaments in October last year than in any previous season. Both the tournamnets have seen 31 per cent increase in audience.

Apart from the attendance in the stadiums and viewership in broadcasting channels, a surge has also been witnessed in social media hits and views too. More than 485 m video views were recorded across Cricket Australia’s social media channels and 93.31 million engagements across the domestic season.

"These numbers demonstrate the passion of cricket fans of all ages and the massive reach that the game enjoys as our national sport. With the Future Tours Program and long-term partnerships with broadcasters Foxtel Group and Seven West Media confirmed, we are more focussed than ever on delivering brilliant experiences for fans in 2023/24 and beyond. I’d like to thank all our fans, players, broadcast, commerical and government partners, venues and staff for making it such a record-breaking season,"  Nick Hockley added.