National Women's Soccer League attendance

The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is the top-tier professional women's soccer league in the United States and Canada. Founded in 2013, the 2018 season saw an average 6,024 spectators among the 9 teams, the highest average attendance in league history. Its overall attendance in 2018 was also its highest ever, with 650,564 total. The NWSL has the second-highest average attendance per game among all women's professional sports leagues in the United States, behind the WNBA.

NWSL attendance has grown since the league's inaugural season in 2013. The per-game average attendance of 6,024 in 2018 was a 41% increase over the 4,270 average in 2013, a growth rate of 7.1% per year, and the total attendance of 650,564 in 2018 was a 73% increase over the 375,763 total in 2013, a growth rate of 11.6% per year.

Fans celebrating after a goal in Portland, Oregon.
The Portland Thorns' average regular-season attendance in 2018 was 16,959 fans.

2017 season

The following is a list of the average per-game regular-season attendance for each of the 10 teams that played in the 2017 season. It includes the team, the average attendances for the 2017 and 2016 regular seasons, the percentage change in attendance from season-to-season, the home venue, the home venue's capacity, and the percent of capacity that the average attendance represents.

The Boston Breakers and FC Kansas City, which folded after the 2017 season, are highlighted in red. The Kansas City team was effectively replaced by the newly launched Utah Royals FC for 2018.

Team2017
Attendance		2016
Attendance		ChangeStadiumCapacity
(Unrestricted)		Percent
(2017)
Boston Breakers2,8963,570-18.9%Jordan Field4,00072.4%
Chicago Red Stars3,1983,005+6.4%Toyota Park20,00016.0%
FC Kansas City1,7883,162-43.5%Swope Soccer Village3,55750.3%
Houston Dash4,5785,696-19.6%BBVA Compass Stadium7,000
(22,039)		65.4%
(20.8%)
North Carolina Courage4,389-*–WakeMed Soccer Park10,00043.9%
Orlando Pride6,1868,785-29.6%Orlando City Stadium25,50024.3%
Portland Thorns FC17,65316,945+4.2%Providence Park21,14483.5%
Seattle Reign FC4,0374,602-12.3%Memorial Stadium6,000
(12,000)		67.3%
(33.6%)
Sky Blue FC2,6132,162+20.9%Yurcak Field5,00052.3%
Washington Spirit3,4913,782-7.7%Maryland SoccerPlex4,00087.3%
Notes

* The Courage's previous incarnation, the Western New York Flash, averaged 3,868 in 2016 under different ownership in Rochester, New York; the franchise relocation thus realized a 13.5% increase in average attendance for this year.

    Season averages

    SeasonTotal GateGamesAverageChangeHigh avg.TeamLow avg.TeamRef
    2013375,763884,270–13,320Portland Thorns FC1,664Sky Blue FC[1]
    2014446,8201084,137–3.1%13,362Portland Thorns FC1,640Sky Blue FC[2]
    2015454,100905,046+21.9%15,639Portland Thorns FC2,189Sky Blue FC[3]
    2016555,7751005,558+10.1%16,945Portland Thorns FC2,162Sky Blue FC[4]
    2017609,9601205,083-8.5%17,653Portland Thorns FC1,788FC Kansas City[5]
    2018650,5641086,024+18.5%16,959Portland Thorns FC2,531Sky Blue FC[6]

    Notes:

    • Green shading indicates record highs; red shading indicates record lows.

    By team

    SeasonBOSCHIKCHOUNCNJORLPORSEAUTAWASWNY
    2013[7]2,4271,7114,626----1,666--13,3202,306--3,6254,485
    2014[8]2,4372,9492,0184,650--1,656--13,3623,666--3,3353,177
    2015[9]2,8634,2103,0916,413--2,189--15,6394,060--4,0872,860
    2016[10]3,5703,0053,1625,696--2,1628,78516,9454,602--3,7823,868
    2017[11]2,8963,1961,7884,5784,3892,6136,18617,6534,037--3,491--
    2018[12]--4,368--3,8965,1292,5314,83716,9593,8249,4663,892--

    NWSL attendance vs. other leagues

    vs. other North American women's professional leagues

    The following table compares the NWSL regular season average attendance against the regular season average attendance for other professional women's sports leagues in North America.

    LeagueYear StartedSport# TeamsSeasonAverage
    attendance    		Average vs.
    prior season    		Total
    Attendance    		Ref
    Women's National Basketball Association1996Basketball1220177,716+0.8%1,574,078[13]
    National Women's Soccer League2013Soccer920186,024+18.5%650,564[6]
    National Pro Fastpitch2004Fastpitch520151,128+26%~135,360[14]
    National Women's Hockey League2015Ice hockey42016–17900[15]

    Notes: Italics indicate statistics for the previous season; NPF had 6 teams for its 2016 & 2017 seasons, though attendance numbers for those are not available.

    vs. other North American professional soccer leagues

    The following table compares the NWSL regular season average attendance against the regular season average attendance for other professional soccer leagues in North America.

    LeagueYear StartedDivision# TeamsSeasonAverage
    attendance    		Average vs.
    prior season    		Total
    Attendance    		Ref
    Major League Soccer1996Men's DI20201622,124+2.0%8,274,266[16]
    National Women's Soccer League2013Women's DI920186,024+18.5%650,564[6]
    North American Soccer League2011Men's DII820174,734−5.4%550,826[17]
    United Soccer League2011Men's DII3020174,294+24.9%2,061,159[18]

    vs. other worldwide women's top-division soccer leagues

    The following table compares the NWSL regular season average attendance against the regular season average attendance for a selection other top-flight soccer leagues from around the world; this list is not exhaustive.

    LeagueYear StartedNation# TeamsSeasonAverage
    attendance    		Average vs.
    prior season    		Total
    Attendance    		Ref
    National Women's Soccer League2013United States920186,024+18.5%650,564[6]
    Liga MX Femenil2017Mexico162017 Apertura2,743NA~307,200[19]
    W-League2008Australia92017–182,139116,290[20]
    FA WSL 12011England920161,128+4.8%~72,200[21]
    Frauen-Bundesliga1990Germany122016–17835−22.4%110,642[22]

    Individual game highest attendance

    Regular season, overall

    Rank Home team Score Away team Attendance Date Source
    1Orlando Pride3–1Houston Dash23,403April 23, 2016[23]
    2Portland Thorns FC0–1Seattle Reign FC21,144July 22, 2015[24]
    2Portland Thorns FC3–3Washington Spirit21,144August 30, 2015[25]
    2Portland Thorns FC3–2Western New York Flash21,144September 11, 2016[26]
    2Portland Thorns FC3–1Chicago Red Stars21,144September 30, 2017[27]
    6Portland Thorns FC3-1Seattle Reign FC21,144September 7, 201834
    7Portland Thorns FC2–0Houston Dash19,672August 19, 2017[28]
    8Portland Thorns FC1–0Seattle Reign FC19,231July 30, 2016[29]
    9Utah Royals FC0–1Chicago Red Stars19,203April 18, 2018[30]
    10Portland Thorns FC1–0Houston Dash19,123August 3, 2014[31]

    NWSL Championship playoffs

    Rank Home team Score Away team Attendance Venue Date Stage Source
    1North Carolina Courage*3–0Portland Thorns FC21,144Providence ParkSeptember 22, 2018Final[32]
    2Portland Thorns FC3–4Western New York Flash20,086Providence ParkOctober 2, 2016Semifinal[33]
    3Portland Thorns FC4–1Orlando Pride18,193Providence ParkOctober 7, 2017Semifinal[34]
    4Portland Thorns FC2–1Seattle Reign FC14,179Providence ParkSeptember 15, 2018Semifinal[35]
    5FC Kansas City*1–0Seattle Reign FC13,264Providence ParkOctober 1, 2015Final[36]
    6Western New York Flash1–2Portland Thorns FC9,129Sahlen's StadiumAugust 31, 2013Final[37]

    Note: boldface indicates winner; * indicates "home" team in predetermined venue for championship final

    See also

    References

    1. ↑ "Taking Attendance 8/18/2013: Final NWSL Attendance Numbers". Kenn.com. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
    2. ↑ Gerhke, Sarah (September 30, 2014). "NWSL: Breaking down 2014 attendance numbers, part I". Soccerwire. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
    3. ↑ Goldberg, Jamie (September 11, 2015). "National Women's Soccer League sees record attendance numbers in third season". The Oregonian. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
    4. ↑ Goldberg, Jamie (November 16, 2016). "National Women's Soccer League once again saw rising attendance numbers in 2016". The Oregonian. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
    5. ↑ "2017 NWSL Attendance". Soccer Stadium Digest. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
    6. 1 2 3 4 "2018 NWSL Attendance". Soccer Stadium Digest. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
    7. ↑ "2013 NWSL Statistics". Retrieved November 27, 2016.
    8. ↑ "2014 NWSL Statistics". Retrieved November 27, 2016.
    9. ↑ "2015 NWSL Statistics". Retrieved November 27, 2016.
    10. ↑ "2016 NWSL Statistics". Retrieved November 27, 2016.
    11. ↑ "2017 NWSL Attendance". Retrieved October 8, 2017.
    12. ↑ "2018 NWSL Attendance". Soccer Stadium Digest. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
    13. ↑ "WNBA Scores Highest Attendance In Six Years During Record-Breaking Season". Retrieved February 13, 2018.
    14. ↑ "A Look Back At The NPF Year 2015". NPF. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
    15. ↑ "Will Female Pro-Hockey Players Ever Get What They're Worth?". Yahoo. Retrieved November 26, 2016.
    16. ↑ "USA » Major League Soccer 2017 » Attendance » Home matches". Retrieved February 13, 2018.
    17. ↑ "NASL Down 5%, But It's Complicated". October 29, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2018.
    18. ↑ "USL Draws 2 Million, Average Up 25%". October 15, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2018.
    19. ↑ https://twitter.com/GlennMoore7/status/946716772077629440
    20. ↑ "De Vanna dramatics send Sydney to Grand Final for showdown with Melbourne City". February 12, 2018. Retrieved February 13, 2018.
    21. ↑ "Year-on-year growth in Women's Super League attendances". November 7, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
    22. ↑ de:Fußball-Bundesliga 2016/17 (Frauen)
    23. ↑ Rosenblatt, Ryan (April 23, 2016). "Orlando Pride set NWSL attendance record in first ever home match". Fox Sports. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
    24. ↑ "Seattle Reign beat Portland Thorns in front of record NWSL crowd". Sports Illustrated. July 23, 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
    25. ↑ Blue, Molly (August 30, 2015). "Portland Thorns draw 3–3 with Washington Spirit in final home game of the season". The Oregonian. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
    26. ↑ "Portland Thorns FC 3, Western New York Flash 2". SB Nation. September 11, 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
    27. ↑ "NWSL Match Recap: Portland Thorns FC 3, Chicago Red Stars 1". Portland Thorns FC. September 30, 2017. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
    28. ↑ "Horan, Henry score as Thorns top Dash 2–0". 20 August 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
    29. ↑ Goldberg, Jamie (July 30, 2016). "Final: Portland Thorns 1, Seattle Reign 0: Live chat recap". The Oregonian. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
    30. ↑ Purdy, Jacqueline (April 18, 2018). "Colaprico, Red Stars spoil Utah's home opener". NWSLsoccer.com. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
    31. ↑ Goldberg, Jamie (August 4, 2014). "Portland Thorns set NWSL attendance record". The Oregonian. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
    32. ↑ "Courage cap off record-setting season with NWSL Championship win". National Women's Soccer League. October 8, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
    33. ↑ "Flash beat Thorns FC, 4–3, in extra time". National Women's Soccer League. October 2, 2016. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
    34. ↑ "NWSL Playoffs Match Recap: Portland Thorns FC 4, Orlando Pride 1". Portland Thorns FC. October 7, 2017. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
    35. ↑ "Thorns advance to NWSL Championship with 2-1 win over Reign". National Women's Soccer League. September 15, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
    36. ↑ Goldberg, Jamie (October 1, 2015). "FC Kansas City wins second consecutive National Women's Soccer League championship title". The Oregonian. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
    37. ↑ Hays, Graham (September 8, 2013). "Portland blazes trail with NWSL title". ESPN. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
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