ITV looks to Euro 2016 soccer to lift advertising revenue

* ITV (LSE: ITV.L - news) 2015 earnings per share up 20 pct, beating forecasts

* Says first-quarter advertising revenue flat

* Sees (Shanghai: 600481.SS - news) boost from European soccer championship in June (Adds CEO comments, analyst reaction, shares)

By Paul Sandle

LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) - British commercial TV broadcaster ITV said the European soccer championship in June would boost advertising, helping it make up ground lost in the first three months of the year.

Chief Executive Adam Crozier expects a "very strong" second quarter, including the start of the soccer tournament, which has expanded to 24 teams this year and will include England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

"There's a lot of extra games, which is good for us and our coverage, and obviously having more home nations there will provide extra interest in the competition right across the UK," he said.

Britain's biggest commercial free-to-air broadcaster said it expected to outperform the TV advertising market in 2016 despite ad revenues being flat in the first three months of the year.

"If you talk to the major advertisers as we do, I think there's no doubt they are still expecting a positive year," Crozier said, after ITV reported a 20 percent jump in 2015 earnings per share.

Shares (Berlin: DI6.BE - news) in ITV were trading down 3.5 percent at 241 pence at 1140 GMT, however, as the short-term performance disappointed investors.

Analyst Steve Liechti at Investec (LSE: INVP.L - news) said the outlook for the first quarter was worse than expected, adding he had forecast a 2.5 percent rise.

ITV has built up its production operations in recent years, reducing its reliance on its channels, which broadcast long-running soap opera "Coronation Street" and crime drama "Vera".

Total (Swiss: FP.SW - news) revenue from ITV Studios rose by a third to 1.24 billion pounds, it said, with more than half generated from outside Britain.

The company's successes included U.S (Other OTC: UBGXF - news) . dramas "Aquarius" and "The Good Witch", and the acquisition of Talpa Media last year brought reality TV format "The Voice" into the ITV stable.

Adjusted earnings at the business rose 27 percent to 206 million pounds ($288 million), outperforming a 16 percent rise in ITV's broadcast and online arm, which reported earnings of 659 million pounds.

Its main ITV channel performed poorly last year in attracting viewers, with its share falling 4 percent. It (Other OTC: ITGL - news) put the drop down to new digital channels, some shows not performing as well as expected and a relatively strong performance from the BBC.

Crozier said viewers had returned at the start of 2016, with share on ITV 1 up 5 percent.

"Mass audiences, that's what we sell," he said. "We have to remain at the top of our game in delivering those audiences."

The company said it would pay 400 million pounds in a special dividend of 10 pence a share in addition to a final dividend of 4.1 pence, which was ahead of previous guidance. ($1 = 0.7160 pounds) (Editing by Kate Holton and Keith Weir)