Euro 2012 final gets TV audience of 299 million

NYON, Switzerland (AP) -UEFA says Spain's 4-0 victory over Italy in the European Championship final attracted an official television audience of 299 million viewers worldwide.

The 2012 Champions League final drew 167 million globally to watch Chelsea's penalty shootout win against Bayern Munich.

UEFA says its figures count "average'' audience throughout the matches. More viewers watch at least parts of matches.

For sports' most popular event, the World Cup final, FIFA reported an average television audience of 530.9 million in 2010. FIFA claimed 1 billion people saw at least some of Spain's victory against the Netherlands.

The Euro 2012 audience rose from 237 million for the Euro 2008 final, when Spain beat Germany 1-0.

The 2012 Champions League final average fell from 179 million for Barcelona's 3-1 win against Manchester United in 2011.