Miami (AP) – As the kickoff drew near, it became evident that the stands were vacant. The Club World Cup, a shiny new addition to the soccer calendar, is promoted as a revitalizing event for the globe’s most beloved sport.
The tournament commenced in the U.S. a week ago, where vast sports arenas and soaring ticket prices anticipated the enthusiastic crowds typically seen worldwide.
However, the vacant rows and empty seats at Orlando’s Inter & Co Stadium on Tuesday told a different story.
“It’s akin to playing football in lockdown,” one observer commented on social media.
For several days, FIFA, the World Governance Body, did not report attendance numbers for the match between Mamelodi Sundowns and Ulsan HD on its official site. It wasn’t until Friday that the figure of 3,412 was updated, yet the actual attendance was estimated to be under 1,000 during the match.
In stark contrast, over 80,000 watched the Champions League showdown between Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid at the massive Rose Bowl in Los Angeles.
The disparity in attendance during the opening week of this month-long tournament across the U.S. is striking.
Orlando’s Attendance Disappoints
The matches between Mamelodi Sundowns and Ulsan HD have highlighted a disappointing turnout for FIFA and its president, Gianni Infantino.
With crowds noticeably thin, the name “Orlando” was spelled out in yellow seats in the main grandstand of Inter & Co Stadium—almost entirely unobstructed. Crowd control stewards monitored the vast expanse of empty space in a venue designed for 25,500 spectators.
This stadium, one of the smaller venues chosen for the tournament, still felt overly large even as ticket prices dropped to $23.
A group match featuring seldom-discussed teams from South Africa and South Korea was unlikely to generate high sales. Additionally, a storm delayed kickoff by over an hour, leading to a lack of attendance.
Ultimately, this was an uncomfortably low turnout, with under 10,000 fans attending one of the three games in the opening week.
Chelsea, Messi, and Even MLS Struggling in Atlanta
Empty seats were also visible during Chelsea’s game against LA FC in Atlanta. Held on a weekday afternoon, the match could barely fill a third of the stadium’s 71,000-person capacity, resulting in 22,000 empty seats.
“The atmosphere felt odd; the stadium was quite empty,” Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca remarked. Even Lionel Messi’s second match in Atlanta, Inter Miami’s win over Porto, failed to draw beyond the stadium’s 31,783 capacity.
Club World Cup Ticket Prices
Speculation around ticket sales has been a hot topic leading up to the tournament, with prices significantly dropping prior to the opening game between Miami and Al-Arie last Saturday. A notable crowd of nearly 61,000 filled the Hard Rock Stadium, though it’s unclear how many paid the previously quoted $349 ticket price from December.
As of Tuesday, FIFA reported that 1.5 million tickets had been sold, with over 340,000 fans attending the first eight matches.
Infantino proudly stated that the Club World Cup has reached the “uncontested pinnacle of global club football.”
Kane Describes Hard Rock Stadium as “Hostile”
Miami’s attendance was commendable, particularly for the Bayern Munich vs. Boca Juniors match, which drew no fewer than 55,000 fans. Bayern star Harry Kane described the Boca fan-dominated atmosphere as “hostile.”
Fans still flocked to Miami even while the Florida Panthers were competing in the Stanley Cup finals. Supporters of Boca and Real Madrid queued for hours in the sweltering heat.
Record Crowd at the Rose Bowl
The largest gathering during Opening Week occurred during the PSG vs. Atletico Madrid match in Los Angeles, drawing 80,619 attendees.
For comparison, this attendance is only a fraction of the 84,163 who witnessed the English FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium, far surpassing the 64,327 at the Champions League final, the most significant club match in Europe.
Comparing to the World Cup and Champions League
No matches were sold out during the Opening Week, yet the overall crowd averaged around 36,000 across 10 of the first 24 games.
According to football data site TransferMarkt, the Champions League’s average last season fell below 46,000; however, such comparisons are challenging due to the new format bringing diverse clubs to the U.S.
During the 2022 Men’s World Cup in Qatar, attendance averaged less than 50,000 per match in the opening week, with the highest attendance reaching 88,103, and only two games drawing under 40,000.
Looking Ahead to the World Cup
The spotlight on the Club World Cup is intense for several reasons.
There remains uncertainty regarding fans’ interest in another elite soccer tournament; according to FIFA, those traveling to support their teams hail mainly from Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico, contributing significantly to ticket sales from abroad.
More importantly, this tournament serves as a precursor to the Men’s World Cup, set to take place mostly in the U.S. next year. The Club World Cup could be indicative of the growth in American soccer interest since the last World Cup held here in 1994.
In this context, it’s not merely about statistics; it’s also about perception. This is why FIFA aims to prevent a repeat of the scenes witnessed at the Mamelodi Sundowns vs. Ulsan HD match.
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Reported by Associated Press journalists Jackson Castellano from Orlando, Florida, and Allyn Tucker from Atlanta.
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For more, follow James Robson on Twitter.
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Source: apnews.com