Perhaps the most important metric used to measure the growing popularity of soccer in the United States is attendance. Bigger crowds mean more money and more eyeballs. That in turn leads to bigger crowds. And so on until football becomes a giant. Digging into the data for 2022, we compiled a list of the 20 highest soccer attendances in the US.
So, without further ado, here are the top 20 US soccer assists for 2022:
Attendance figures for 2022
Of the 20 most crowded games, only four of them are Major League Soccer games. And three of those four are Atlanta United games. Consequently, that means only 20% of the top 20 games feature MLS games.
The league certainly has a long way to go to attract higher attendance. This summer’s Leagues Cup could go a long way in increasing crowd sizes by tapping into the support of Liga MX fans.
Highest Soccer Attendance in the US by 2022
In total, 38 games were played in the US in 2022 that drew more than 40,000 people. That number is up from 28 such games last year. And it’s also way up compared to 2020, when there were three such games before COVID shut down the world. Crowds can be broken down as follows:
18 crowds in the 40,000 5 crowds in the 50,000 11 crowds in the 60,000 5 crowds in the 70,000 1 crowd in the 90,000 European clubs
European club teams have long tended to draw massive crowds for preseason games in the US. This year was no different. Five of the matches on this list were between two European clubs. Four additional games on this list included a European club.
Also, it’s no surprise that some of the biggest crowds were there to see the biggest clubs from all over Europe. England teams included Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal. There were the two Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona. And of course the German and Italian leagues were represented with Bayern Munich and Juventus.
Mexican team
The less surprising US soccer news is that Mexico draws some of the biggest soccer crowds in the United States. Six of the seven games that El Tri played in the United States in 2022 had large attendances. All six of those games broke the 50,000 mark. That’s an especially impressive number considering they were all friendlies rather than Gold Cup or Nations League games.
Missing US National Team
The year 2022 marks the first time since 2006 that the list of the largest soccer crowds in the US does not include either the USMNT or the USWNT. As frustrating as this is for American fans, it really comes as no surprise given US Soccer’s conscious and myopic decision to only play in the same stadiums. Hopefully, with the USMNT coming off a Round of 16 appearance in Qatar, and the USWNT gearing up for the Women’s World Cup, they’ll draw big crowds again.
MLS teams
For years, the Seattle Sounders were the beacon of what support for American soccer could be. That mantle was then passed to Atlanta United. Both clubs are present on this list. The Sounders reached the CONCACAF Champions League final against Pumas. And he appeared with the Cascadia Cup rivalry with the Portland Timbers. Nearly every Atlanta United game also had sizable crowds.
But, it’s not just Atlanta and Seattle that are doing well. Charlotte FC, the newest expansion team in MLS, generated several huge assists. Their first home game was the third largest crowd in the world on the weekend it was played. They had a huge crowd when they entered the playoff run at the end of the season. And for good measure they had a solid attendance for an exhibition against Chelsea.
stadium size
Finally, when looking at these games, keep in mind the actual stadiums in use. Almost every stadium has a primary tenant that is an NFL team. Of course, Atlanta built its new stadium with the intention of luring Major League Soccer into getting Atlanta an expansion team. That was a success, and Atlanta United has by far the largest stadium in Major League Soccer when it comes to its reduced capacity. At full capacity, Bank of America, home of Charlotte FC, and the Sounders’ Lumen Field can rival Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Still, those three stadiums are best known for their NFL teams. The Falcons, Panthers and Seahawks all play to the best of their ability. Charlotte FC played at full capacity for much of the season with 38,000. Seattle Sounders hovered just below that. So seeing some of the capabilities expanded in those places isn’t a huge surprise. Still, it may be a testament to the popularity of those teams in those respective areas to have maximum capacity games on special occasions that exceed 50,000.
PHOTO: IMAGO / Icon Sportswire
