Rural areas cover 80% of Europe's territory, while only one third of the European population lives in rural areas and two thirds in urban areas.

Omissions

• The European Commission's canonical figures (Long-term vision for rural areas, 2021) are 83% of EU territory and 30% of the population (137 million people), not exactly '80%' and 'one third'.
• Under Eurostat's DEGURBA local typology (cities / towns and suburbs / rural areas), the rural population share is closer to 25%, so 'one third' slightly overstates the rural population share.
• The claim refers to 'Europe', whereas the official statistics refer to the EU-27.
• Only a single independent academic source explicitly stating both figures (80% territory, ~30% population) was retrieved; the primary Eurostat page was identified but its exact figures could not be fully extracted within the search limit.

Sources

• PrimaryEurostat Statistics Explained — 'Urban-rural Europe - introduction'The degree of urbanisation is a local typology that, at a 1st level, identifies cities, towns and suburbs, and rural areas (based on information for population ...)
• AcademicResearchGate — 'Territorial Facts and Trends in the EU Rural Areas within 2015-2030'In the European Union, around 80% of the territory is comprised of rural areas, while only around 30% of the population lives in those areas (European ...)