The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games has made history with unprecedented media coverage across Spain, recording around 23,400 published materials from various platforms including digital, television, radio, and print.
Data from the Comité Paralímpico Español (CPE), facilitated by Kantar Onclusive and Servimedia, revealed this impressive burst of media activity, which occurred primarily during the months of August and September 2024. During the actual games, nearly 2,000 pieces of news were released daily, highlighting the excitement and interest surrounding the event.
This staggering influx of publications translated to advertising value equivalent to €308 million, more than doubling the value obtained during the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, representing an increase of 135%. "Esos datos son el reflejo de una avance constante en la repercusión" ("These data reflect the constant progress of dissemination") stated representatives from the CPE.
A significant portion of this media excitement stemmed from the broadcasts carried by Spanish public television, TVE, which reached 20% of Spain's total population. CPE's data showed broadcasts from Teledeporte and La 2 collectively attracted 9.6 million viewers during various games and related programs.
On the digital front, the Paris 2024 Paralympics reported remarkable engagement through RTVE Play, which recorded 1.4 million live views, tripling the engagement compared to the previous Tokyo event. Adding to this were another 550,000 views on demand, representing a 200% increase.
The opening ceremony of the Games emerged as the most-watched TV event, achieving 294,000 live viewers, which equated to 3.6% of the viewing audience and drew 2.7 million unique viewers across the entire event period. A highly anticipated semi-final of women's T12 200 meters, featuring Spanish athlete Melani Berges, also became the standout competition event with 191,000 viewers and 2.4% share.
Finals of triathlon on RTVE Play topped the charts of live events with 406,000 real-time views as fans engaged eagerly with replays and summaries. Notably, the recap program hosted by Frank Robert, alongside expert insights from paralympic swimmer Carla Casals, saw its highest ratings on the evening of September 6, attracting 163,000 viewers.
Social media efforts were equally successful, with the CPE's profiles on platforms like Instagram seeing 7 million visualizations, 2.9 million impressions on X, and notable reach on TikTok and Facebook, highlighting the thrill of the Games from every angle.
A dedicated section for Paris 2024 on the paralimpicos.es website functioned as a key tool not only for real-time updates but also as a support platform for media representatives. This webpage witnessed spectacular growth compared to the figures reported during the Tokyo Games, logging 914,000 page views and 466,000 unique users—a near quadrupling of users.
The CPE emphasized the global significance of the Paris 2024 event, citing it as the first time 22 disciplines from the Paralympic program received live broadcasts worldwide, reaching an astounding 160 countries. The rising visibility reflects not only the Games' popularity but the increasing global interest.
Interestingly, this edition of the Paralympic Games marked the first occasion where limits were placed on accredited media representatives, allowing only 2,200 journalists. This cap arose from the overwhelming interest from various media outlets and the geographical advantage of many European countries close to Paris. Among the accredited media, Spain sent 60 journalists from around 30 different organizations. TVE led the representation with six accredited members, followed by Efe with four journalists on-site, and other agencies including Servimedia and Europa Press, along with numerous print and digital outlets.
The participation of leading news agencies and sports portfolios like ‘El Español,’ ‘Relevo,’ ‘Marca,’ and ‘Sport’ ensured the event was widely covered and accessible to fans across the nation.
The successful media coverage of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games signifies not just growth and interest but also sets the precedent for future events, making it clear how transformed and inclusive these sports have become on the global stage. "París 2024 constató el carácter definitivamente global del que gozan los Juegos Paralímpicos" ("Paris 2024 confirmed the definitely global nature of the Paralympic Games"), remarked the CPE, as they highlighted the event's legacy.
