Business aviation departures in Europe marked their busiest month ever in July, reaching 94,002, according to WingX’s most recent Business Aviation Monitor. Total activity in Europe last month increased 4 percent year over year and is up cumulatively for the year by 3 percent.

Activity increased 11 percent year over year in Greece, which came in as the seventh busiest European country for the month. The UK and Germany each experienced notable growth, up 7 percent year over year. And Russia, which hosted the Football World Cub, experienced a 26 percent bounce. Flights from the UK to Russia surged by more than 130 percent.

France remained the busiest country for business aviation flights despite a 1 percent slide in demand. WingX pointed to a dip in large-jet flights for the softened numbers in France. Italy and Spain experienced a similar trend. But at the same time, large-jet activity increased nearly 10 percent in Switzerland and Greece and 36 percent in Russia. Small and midsize activity in Italy, meanwhile, climbed 9 percent in the month.

“The Football World Cup helped in boosting business aviation activity to its highest ever monthly level in July, with business jets 6 percent busier than back in 2008,” said Richard Koe, managing director of WingX Advance. “There was balanced growth in large, midsize and small jet activity, with continued shift in demand towards charter, although private flights also up.”

In all, business jets accounted for 60,178 of the departures in July. Charter or operations involving an air operator’s certificate comprised 60 percent of all business aviation activity, and business jets made up the majority of those flights. Charter activity was up 3.9 percent year over year, while private flights marked a fourth consecutive month of year-over-year growth, increasing 2 percent.

Flights involving Embraer business jets jumped more than 20 percent and Gulfstreams by 12 percent.