The opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics in Beijing this year could become the first sporting event to attract a record total live audience of one billion, according to a report by global media communications agency Initiative Sports Futures.

Kevin Alavy, head of analytics at Initiative Sports Futures said, however, that only a handful of elite competitions truly attract global audiences. The final match of one of the biggest international sporting events last year, the Rugby World Cup, for example, drew only 33 million viewers globally, according to Initiative.