A user on Reddit has complied a comprehensive list regarding soccer attendances in 2023.

Although the Premier League is widely considered to be the top division in the world, the English top flight did not earn the top spot on attendance.

Germany’s Bundesliga edged the Premier League by averaging nearly 43,000 fans per fixture. This is almost 3,000 more people per game than the English division.

German giants Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich anchored the German league by both averaging over 75,000 fans per match. Only two teams across the world recorded higher attendance figures on the year than the Bundesliga duo.

European giants unsurprisingly dominate chart

According to the Reddit post, the Premier League does, however, hold the second spot in the rankings by considerable margin. The division averaged more than 10,000 fans per game compared to the third-placed Italian Serie A. Manchester United unsurprisingly led the English top flight by recording 73,671 fans each home game.

Nevertheless, West Ham actually finished second in England by averaging 62,000 supporters per match. The Hammers previously moved into the spacious London Stadium back in 2016 after leaving Upton Park. The club’s previous historic home could only accommodate around 35,000 fans.

Europe continued to dominate the attendance charts, as the Serie A and LaLiga were both included in the top four of the rankings. The Italian league only narrowly topped the Spanish top flight in attendance during 2023. Serie A was boosted thanks to rivals AC Milan and Inter Milan, as well as Roma.

Barcelona’s place in the top-spot will not be repeated in 2024 due to the ongoing construction work on the Camp Nou
Barcelona’s place in the top-spot will not be repeated in 2024 due to the ongoing construction work on the Camp Nou

Barcelona’s place in the top-spot will not be repeated in 2024 due to the ongoing construction work on the Camp Nou

The two Milan sides currently share the San Siro. Despite playing matches in the same stadium, Inter Milan actually edged their bitter rivals in the attendance department. I Nerazzurri averaged about 800 more fans per game than AC Milan.

MLS manages to crack top 10 of attendance rankings

Although Europe predictably dominated the peak of the attendance rankings, four North/South American leagues did make the top 10 of the list. Brazil’s Serie A and Argentina’s Primera Division both finished in the top five of the rankings. River Plate, one of Argentina’s premier clubs, actually averaged just over 81,000 fans per game during the calendar year. Only Barcelona managed to record a higher attendance in this timeframe.

Major League Soccer finished ninth in the list, as North American clubs averaged 22,111 fans per match. Although no MLS side cracked the top 10, Atlanta United grabbed the top attendance spot in the league by averaging 47,526 fans each game. This is good enough for 31st in the club rankings. It, however, must be noted that MLS counts its attendances as tickets distributed instead of actual fans in the seats.

Top 10 soccer league attendance rankings:

1. Bundesliga – 42,997 (Germany)
2. Premier League – 40,236 (England)
3. Serie A – 29,551 (Italy)
4. La Liga – 29,488 (Spain)
5. Primera División – 27,293 (Argentina)
6. Brasileiro Série A – 25,544 (Brazil)
7. Ligue 1 – 23,803 (France)
8. 2. Bundesliga – 22,183 (Germany)
9. Major League Soccer – 22,111 (United States)
10. Liga MX – 21,007 (Mexico)

Top 10 soccer club attendance rankings:

1. Barcelona – 83,415 (Spain)
2. River Plate – 81,853 (Argentina)
3. Borussia Dortmund – 81,228 (Germany)
4. Bayern Munich – 75,000 (Germany)
5. Manchester United – 73,671 (England)
6. Inter Milan – 72,630 (Italy)
7. AC Milan – 71,828 (Italy)
8. Olympique de Marseille – 62,739 (France)
9. West Ham United – 62,462 (England)
10. AS Roma – 62,043 (Italy)

Photo credits: IMAGO / Revierfoto : IMAGO / NurPhoto