A women’s football club record crowd of 60,739 saw Alex Chidiac’s Atletico Madrid take on Barcelona at the Wanda Metropolitano on Sunday,
The top of the table clash in the Spanish La Liga Iberdrola broke a 99-year-old women’s club football record as Barcelona reduced Atletico’s lead at the top of the standings, thanks to a 2-0 victory.
https://twitter.com/FCBfemeni/status/1107250951696588801
Matildas midfielder Chidiac was an unused substitute.
https://twitter.com/AtletiFemenino/status/1107239336016252928
Growing the game
The attendance at the Wanda Metropolitano eclipsed the previous European record of 50,212 set at the 2012 UEFA Champions League final between Lyon and Frankfurt in Munich’s Olympiastadion.
It also topped the 99 year old previous club football record when, on Boxing Day in 1920, the famed Dick, Kerr Ladies pulled 53,000 supporters to Goodison Park for a clash with St. Helens.
https://twitter.com/AtletiFemenino/status/1107340823325278211
The Atletico and Barcelona match is just the latest in an upward trend in women’s club football attendances.
In May 2018 51,211 witnessed the Liga MX Femenil Clausura Final between Monterrey and Tigres UANL while, earlier this year in January, 48,121 were on hand for the Spanish Copa de la Reina final between Athletic Bilbao and Atlético.
Last year, for the third successive year, the FA Cup between Chelsea and Arsenal set a England women’s club record with a bumper crowd of 45,423 at Wembley.
The world record crowd was no accident with Alvaro Pascual from Atletico detailing the marketing undertaken to drive attendance around the match.
“Since the tickets went on sale on February 18, the club has made its best efforts to promote the match in the best way possible,” he said.
“We’ve published videos of players from our men’s first team encouraging the fans to attend the match at the Metropolitano and the players from our women’s team have carried out several autograph sessions at the club’s official stores and during tours of the stadium in order to promote the game”.
The benchmark for women’s football crowds still remains the 1999 World Cup final where 90,185 saw the United States defeat China in a penalty shootout at the Rose Bowl.
Women’s football record attendances
Club
| Crowd | Date | Match | Location |
| 60,739 | 17 Mar 2019 | Atletico Madrid 0 – 2 Barcelona | Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid |
| 53,000 | 26 Dec 1920 | Dick, Kerr Ladies 4 – 0 St. Helen’s | Goodison Park, Liverpool |
| 51,211 | 5 May 2018 | Monterrey 2-2 Tigres UAN | Estadio BBVA, Monterrey |
| 50,212 | 17 May 2012 | Frankfurt 0 – 2 Lyon | Olympiastadion,Munich |
| 48,212 | 30 Jan 2019 | Athletic Club 0 – 2 Atlético Madrid | San Mamés, Bilbao |
| 45,423 | 5 May 2018 | Arsenal 1 – 3 Chelsea | Wembley Stadium, London |
International football
| Crowd | Date | Match | Location |
| 90,185 | 10 Jul 1999 | United States (5)0-0(4) China | Rose Bowl, Pasadena |
| 80,203 | 9 Aug 2012 | United States 2-1 Japan | Wembley Stadium, London |
| 78,792 | 19 Jun 199 | United States 3-0 Denmark | Giants Stadium, East Rutherford |
| 76,489 | 1 Aug 1996 | United States 2-1 China | Sanford Stadium, Athens, Georgia |
| 73,680 | 26 Jun 2011 | Germany 2-1 Canada | Olympiastadion, Berlin |
