A total of 20.69 million viewers in France followed the French team’s victory over Morocco in the semi-finals on Wednesday evening, AFP reported on Thursday.
This is a record audience for a World Cup since 2006. In total more than 66% of viewers in France followed the match, in which the French beat the Moroccans with a score of 2-0 for qualify for the final, according to AFP.
French President Emannuel Macron was in Qatar on Wednesday evening to encourage the Blues. He will return there on Sunday for the final match between France and Argentina.
About 25,000 people celebrated the French victory on Wednesday evening on the avenue des Champs-Elysées in Paris, according to the French press, citing the figure of the Paris prefecture. 5,000 police, gendarmes and firefighters were mobilized to guarantee order and security on this occasion in the Paris region. A specific device has been put in place on the avenue des Champs-Elysées, according to the Paris police headquarters.
“The whole world follows the matches” of the 2022 World Cup on TV, with record audiences recorded every day, reported the French newspaper l’Equipe, quoting a FIFA spokesperson.