In a night that kept audiences glued to their screens, Antena 3 once again led the way in viewership, as the audience opted for the channel to follow a special New Year’s broadcast featuring Cristina Pedroche and Alberto Chicote. The program drew a 33.5% share and attracted about 5.235 million viewers, a slight drop from the previous year. Yet at the exact moment the twelve grapes tradition began, the channel peaked with a 39% audience share and roughly 6.666 million people watching. This spike illustrates how pivotal the midnight moment remains for Spanish households tuning in for the countdown, even as the overall numbers shift year to year.
For Canada and the United States readers, this pattern mirrors how peak moments during annual holidays can dramatically lift a network’s audience, even if total ratings soften as households switch to time-shifted viewing or different channels later in the evening. [Cited ratings data]
La 1, the country’s public broadcaster, marked a milestone by delivering its first 23.6% share in 17 years without Anne Igartiburu at Puerta del Sol. The evening featured Ana Obregón and Los Morancos guiding viewers through the special, and despite a 1.2-point rise versus the 2021 edition, the channel still lost just over 460,000 viewers overall. At midnight, the twelve bells brought in a stronger audience for public television, drawing 26.1% share and 4.469 million viewers, underscoring the enduring appeal of a coordinated national moment. This demonstrates how state-supported broadcasting can carve out a meaningful slice of holiday viewership even amid competition from private networks. [Cited ratings data]
Mediaset faced a different challenge, entrusting Risto Mejide and Mariló Montero from Torrejón de Ardoz with ceremonial hosting. The pre-countdown segment on Telecinco registered a modest 6.5% share with just over 1 million viewers, while the countdown itself rose to 4.7% and about 799,000 viewers. The evening’s retransmission on Cuatro struggled, pulling in only 1.6% and 250,000 viewers. The night highlighted how the same event can produce starkly different outcomes across network brands, depending on hosting, format, and audience expectations. [Cited ratings data]
LaSexta found itself trailing the prior year’s high but remained competitive, closing the night just behind Telecinco by a few tenths. Dani Mateo and Cristina Pardo had previously steered Directo al 2023, reaching a 4.8% share and 769,000 viewers. As New Year’s celebrations progressed, the channel settled at around 4.4% with approximately 748,000 viewers at the moment the bells rang. The night’s results illustrate how a multi-network event can fragment viewers across channels, yet still deliver meaningful engagement across the board. [Cited ratings data]
Across the board, the evening underscored the importance of how timing, hosts, and the pacing of the broadcast influence overall audience retention. For broadcasters, the lesson is clear: the countdown moment remains a powerful attractor, but sustaining momentum through the surrounding segments requires careful programming, regional appeal, and a touch of spontaneity. In markets outside Spain, similar dynamics play out when major events unfold in prime time, with peaks often concentrated at the final minutes of the hour and a strong finish leaving a lasting impression on viewers who tune in for the closing moments. [Attribution: TV ratings analysis]