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outhampton’s match against Manchester City became the most-watched Premier League game ever, after recording a peak audience of 5.7 million on BBC.

The game, which took place on July 5, overtook the previous record of 5.5 million, a match between now-Premier League champions, Liverpool, and Everton on pay-TV broadcaster Sky Sports, which made the fixture free-to-air when it took place in June.

BBC lead executive of football, Steve Rudge, said the broadcaster has enjoyed its first opportunity to hold broadcast rights to live Premier League games within the league’s commitment to show every fixture in the UK live.

“Having the Premier League has been great for our viewers,” Rudge said, discussing how the broadcaster also managed to draw 3.9 million viewers for a matchup of Crystal Palace against Bournemouth last month.

“We were delighted to deliver this game to the widest free-to-air audience,” he said.

The BBC, which originally only held domestic Premier League highlight rights, is set to show its next free-to-air fixture on July 15, with a matchup between Burnley and Wolverhampton Wanderers.