While Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) secured a historic back-to-back Champions League triumph, the television audience didn’t reach the heights of their previous victory. Last season’s dominant 5-0 win over Inter Milan drew an average of 11.5 million viewers, but this time around, the numbers fell short.

For their second consecutive final appearance, PSG faced Arsenal under Luis Enrique’s leadership. The match drew 6.2 million viewers on M6, with a peak of 13.5 million during the final minutes. Canal+ recorded 2.9 million viewers, combining for over 2 million fewer viewers on free-to-air television compared to last year’s final.

A clash with another major sporting event explains the drop in viewership. The third round of the French Open’s men’s singles match featuring rising star Moïse Kouamé began at 4:15 PM, just as PSG’s final kicked off at 6 PM. The young French tennis player drew 3 million viewers to his match, inevitably diverting some football fans away from the Champions League decider.

Moïse Kouamé’s match draws strong tennis audience

Moïse Kouamé found himself at the center of a scheduling conflict. The 17-year-old had hoped to watch PSG’s final after his own match on Suzanne Lenglen Court, but Roland-Garros’ organizers had other plans. Despite the overlap, Kouamé still managed to captivate 3 million viewers during his four-set loss to Alejandro Tabilo (6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-7[9-11]).

“I caught the penalty shootout! I think I saw the worst moment,” the teenager joked in his post-match press conference, wearing a PSG jersey. “It’s a small consolation for my loss,” he added with a smile, clearly a fan of the Parisian club despite the disappointment on court.