Montreal confirmed that it's a major North American soccer market when the D2's Impact drew 47,861 fans at Olympic Stadium for its game against touring AC Milan.
No matter Milan won, 4-1, to earn its first win on the tour. The Impact was ecstatic with the turnout, which included a walkup crowd of almost 10,000. “For Montreal, for North America, this was excellent,” said Impact coach Marco Dos Santos. “Congratulations to all of us. When I say all of us, it’s the city that proved once again that we have to be at the highest level of soccer in North America because with 47,000 people, we saw another great experience for our players, our staff, the city and the fans.”
The three largest crowds in Montreal soccer history are the 1976 Olympic gold-medal game between East Germany and Poland (71,617 fans), 1981 NASL game between the Montreal Manic and Chicago Sting (58,543) and 2009 Concacaf Champions League game between the Impact and Mexico's Santos (55,571).
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