Who Was the Most Watched AFL Team of 2016?

We’ve come to the end of yet another AFL season, and with it we now have a fuller picture of the streaming, TV and Foxtel figures over the season.

The 2016 AFL Grand Final rated 4.089 million – up 16% on last season and the highest Grand Final ratings since the 2006 premiership decider. In Melbourne, the event was watched by more than 1.4 million people – the highest total since the 2010 Grand Final Replay, while in Sydney the event had its highest audience since 2012.

Ratings for the finals themselves were up 12% on last year’s final series, with Brisbane (50%) and Sydney (37%), the big movers. Western Australia dropped like a rock after West Coast were knocked out, while Adelaide experienced a small lift.

2016 AFL Finals Crowds & Ratings

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Finals occupied the top 9 places in the rankings for the AFLs most watched matches in 2016. Outside of the finals, the number 1 match with viewers was the round 10, Friday night clash between Hawthorn and North Melbourne which as watched by more than 1.3 million. The ANZAC Day clash, traditionally one of the top ranking matches for the season slotted in at number 20 in 2016 with 1.14 million.

2016 Top 20 AFL Crowds & Ratings

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On Foxtel, the Greater Western Sydney v Western Bulldogs was the most viewed match on Foxtel in 2016 with 565,000 viewers, making it the most viewed AFL game of all time on Foxtel, and the 5th overall.

The Clubs you watched

The Western Bulldogs had the most ratings of any team over the course of the year, helped by record ratings for the grand final, and in the end narrowly beat the Swans who featured in the same event.