Leagues Cup attendances lower than typical MLS crowds

Repeating the drama of last summer’s Leagues Cup was always going to be a tall order. Messi Mania took over almost immediately and lasted the whole tournament as Inter Miami won the trophy.

For this year’s Leagues Cup, things were far different. Messi missed the whole tournament due to injury. Except for Club América, most of the more popular Mexican teams were eliminated early. Even crowds for Club America’s three games were spotty. The Águilas drew 21,311 in San Diego against Club Atlas, and 22,462 for its game against Colorado Rapids. Meanwhile, América only drew 11,553 in Los Angeles against St. Louis City.

No doubt that Major League Soccer will point to crowds of 46,080 for Inter Miami versus Tigres in Houston, and 50,675 in Santa Clara for Chivas against the San Jose Earthquakes as a success. However, those two crowds proved to be the exception rather than the rule. Most crowds for MLS teams were far below their usual average team attendance.

A close look at the underperforming MLS home attendances at Leagues Cup

These are the MLS teams whose average Leagues Cup crowds were the worst, relative to their usual attendance:

A handful of the attendances for Leagues Cup games weren’t reported. World Soccer Talk reached out to an MLS spokesperson, but she did not respond in time.

What happened at the individual clubs?

Seattle has long been a gold standard of American soccer support. For years, the Sounders faithful have packed out Lumen Field. During this year’s Leagues Cup, however, they did not. They played five home games and none of them made it to 30,000 while two fell below 20,000. As a result, their average attendance for this year’s League’s Cup was 38% lower than what they draw historically.

Meanwhile, in Missouri, St Louis City attendance in Leagues Cup was a disappointment. Since joining MLS last year, every single game exceeded 20,000 people in attendance, and all but one sold out. Not only did none of their three Leagues Cup games sell out, but none of them reached 20,000 people. They went from 17,854 against FC Dallas, to 16,256 against FC Juarez, to just 10,833 against the Portland Timbers.

On the West Coast, LAFC’s average since the opening of BMO Stadium in 2018 is a robust 20,819 fans per game over 128 games. At the Leagues Cup, though, they only reported attendance at two of their five games. The two they announced were both below their usual average: 18,351 against the Vancouver Whitecaps and 12,930 against Austin FC. The games they did not report were against Tijuana, the San Jose Earthquakes, and the Colorado Rapids.

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Austin FC reported neither game

Similar to St. Louis City, the stands at Q2 Stadium in Austin have been filled to the brim since the stadium opened. Before the Leagues Cup this year, every game except two had drawn a sellout crowd of 20,738. But just as in St. Louis, attendances at Austin FC games were disappointing. The Texan club has not released the attendance for either of their two home games. Those were a pair of blockbusters against Pumas and Monterrey.

The 2023 edition of Leagues Cup was successful largely because of the arrival of Lionel Messi. With Messi out injured, this year’s tournament suffered. If things don’t improve, the Leagues Cup could end up going the same way as the old North American SuperLiga, into extinction.

Photo: IMAGO / Icon Sportswire.