Where is the Six Nations most popular? And how do its fans mirror those of F1?

Ahead of start of the 2023 Six Nations on February 4, here’s a look at the interest levels in the tournament in the UK, France, and Italy.

We also take a look at some key demographic characteristics of those interested in the tournament.

Interest levels show sharp variances from market to market. Just under a fifth of Italians (18%) say that the Six Nations is one of their top interests or that they are somewhat interested in it. Consumers in the UK are 61% likelier to express an interest in the tournament (29%). One in four French people are also fans (26%).

Splitting UK data by the constituent countries reveals even sharper differences, with consumers in Wales (51%) being twice as likely as those in England (26%) to be interested in the event. Two-fifths of consumers in Northern Ireland (41%) and a slightly lower share of Scots (36%) are also interested in the Six Nations.
Who are these fans?

Six Nations fans in the UK, France and Italy are a slightly older cohort, with 45% of them aged over 55 compared to 41% of general consumers in these markets.

Compared to select other popular sports properties in these three markets, the share of younger adults in the Six Nations fans audience tends to be lower. A fifth of Six Nations fans are aged between 18-34 (19%), compared to a quarter of FIFA World Cup (24%) and Summer Olympics fans (23%).

Interestingly, the share of those aged between 35-44 or 45-54 is close to identical across fans of all events, hovering between 36-37%. Overall, the age-split of Six Nations fans is most comparable to that of Formula 1.

Two-thirds of Six Nations fans are men (66%). This share is comparable to that of the FIFA World Cup and Formula 1, although females make up a slightly higher share of those fan audiences (37%). The Olympics fan group has the highest representation of women at 48%.

Methodology: YouGov Global Fan Profiles, which includes data from 51 markets, is based on continuously collected data from several sources, rather than from a single limited questionnaire. Respondents in the UK, Italy and France are aged 18+ years. Data from each market uses a nationally representative sample.