Record 32.5m Germans watch WC semi on TV

A record 32.5 million Germans watched on TV their team thump Brazil 7-1 in the World Cup semi-final, German channel ZDF reported.

Tuesday's TV viewer ratings, which amount to an audience share of 87.8 per cent, surpassed the 31.1 million who followed Germany in the semis of the 2010 World Cup, when the team lost to Spain, ZDF said.

The ratings survey did not include 10 million people who according to estimates viewed the match in public squares where huge screens were set up, nor those who followed it on internet.