BEIJING - The Asian Cup 2004 final between China and Japan has smashed viewing records, including those for the 2002 FIFA World Cup final, to become the most watched single sports event in the history of Chinese television.

According to early independent figures released on Tuesday, a staggering 43.1 per cent of people watching television in China at peak time on Saturday evening tuned in to CCTV to watch China play in their first Asian Cup final in 20 years.

These figures mean that, on a nationwide scale, over 250 million people would have seen the game, which China lost 3-1 to Japan. This compares with audience highs of 24 million for the Final of Euro 2004 and substantially lower figures for other major European football league telecasts.

Initial viewing figures from 24 major cities across China show that 18.5 per cent of the total population in China watched the whole game, dwarfing the figure of 14.4 per cent for the 2002 FIFA World Cup match between China and Brazil, which was, until last week's Asian Cup semi-final between China and Iran, the highest rated televised sports broadcast in China.

The domestic television audience for both the Asian Cup final and China's semi-final win over Iran was also bigger than that for 2002 FIFA World Cup final, which was played at the same time of the day.

"We went into this event with high expectations but we have been blown away by the impact the Asian Cup has had the length and breadth of China," said Nick Mould, the Hong Kong-based chief executive of World Sport Football, the marketing partner of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

"The figures confirm what we have always believed - that Asia can stage high quality events and produce the high quality football that fans want to see. These numbers show the very real affection hundreds of millions of people have for Asian football and clearly indicate what they really want to watch."

"The Asian Cup has rewritten the record books for sports programming in China," said Vincent Cheung of CSM/TNS Sport China, the worldwide media research company commissioned for the event.

"No matter what unit of measurement is used, this is the highest performing sports event and has raised the bar for all sports events that take place in the future."

Viewing figures in Japan are equally impressive, the final attracting 38 per cent of all viewers who were watching television on Saturday evening and a total rating figure of 32.4 per cent.

Interest in the Asian Cup in Japan doubled as the tournament progressed. The opening group game, against Oman, achieved a 12.7 per cent rating figure; the quarter-final win over Jordan 18.5 per cent; and the 4-3 semi-final win over Bahrain 20.3 per cent.

A spokesman for TV Asahi, the Japanese terrestrial broadcaster, described the figures as "confirmation of the audience pulling power of top Asian football tournaments."

The Asian Cup final was broadcast live in over 60 countries throughout Asia and the rest of the world by terrestrial, satellite and cable broadcasters.