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The Qatar-based beIN media group announced that it hit a record of more than 5.4 billion cumulative views on its flagship channel beIN Sports across the Middle East and North Africa during its almost month-long broadcast of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

The media group also recorded 1.1 billion views across all of its official social media channels.

The thrilling final between giants Argentina and France - which La Albiceleste won 4-2 on penalties - also drew a record-breaking 242,8 million viewers, accounting for an increase of 88 million in comparison to the previous World Cup final, which took place in Russia in 2018. The final between France and Croatia in Moscow attracted 154.8 million viewers.

The final’s viewership accounted for 68 percent of the MENA’s adult population, which is roughly more than two thirds.

The final was particularly watched in the host country Qatar, drawing in 93 percent of its adult population, followed by Morocco (91 percent), Lebanon (89 percent) and Algeria (79 percent), respectively.

Overall, beIN witnessed an increase of 135 percent in viewership in comparison to the 2018 Russia-held tournament.

Meanwhile, the final match drew in a cumulative viewership of 25m with viewership on its official YouTube channel, reaching a peak of 4.44m during the penalty shootouts.

BeIN Group’s MENA CEO, Mohammad Al-Subaie, said: "It’s incredibly special for us that the first World Cup in the Middle East has broken regional viewership records with more than 5.4 billion cumulative views across the month-long tournament. This is evidence of the appetite for football and similar tournaments across the Arab World and we are honoured to have been the exclusive rights holder".

"We are excited to be preparing for many more extensive broadcasts as we continue to inspire, educate, and entertain viewers across MENA," he added.

The tournament, which was the first of its kind to be held in the MENA region, featured four Arab teams: Saudi Arabia, hosts Qatar, Tunisia and Morocco.

Morocco’s Atlas Lions, who impressed football fans with their history-making performance, saw them advance to the semi-final of the tournament, making them the first Arab and African team to do so.

Morocco’s semi-final against France, which ended with the Atlas Lions’ elimination, also drew a record viewership of 186.1 million on beIN Sports, with 99 percent of Morocco’s adult population tuning into the thrilling match.

The 2022 World Cup was also one of the most watched of all time, with more than 3.4 million spectators attending matches in stadiums.