MLS attendance on the rise
- by Mike Woitalla @MikeWoitalla, Oct 26, 2010
[MLS ATTENDANCE] Average attendance for the 2010 regular season, with Seattle on top for the second straight season, was the highest
since 2007 and the third highest in league history.
League newcomer Philadelphia had the fourth highest average with 19,254. Among the 15 returning teams, all but six had an increase from
2009.
Those whose attendance dropped included Toronto FC, which after a fourth straight season of missing the playoffs saw only a 0.5 percent decrease.
The San Jose Earthquakes
had a lower average than in 2009, but drew 9,659 in its Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara with a capacity of 10,500. Last season, the Quakes played two games at the Oakland Coliseum against the Los
Angeles Galaxy (drawing 15,862 and 17,128) and one at San Francisco’s Candlestick Park that was a doubleheader with Chivas Guadalajara-Barcelona that drew 61,572.
Also deceiving is
the drop in attendance for FC Dallas, which last season included in its average a crowd of 51,012 when it played a doubleheader at the Cotton Bowl with headliner Mexico-Colombia. In fact, for the
first time in years, MLS clubs did not combine doubeheaders with international clubs or national teams in 2010.
Still, FC Dallas’ 2010 average of 10,815 in its soccer-specific Pizza
Hut Park is discouraging, especially considering the team’s strong season, which included an MLS record-tying 19-game unbeaten streak.
D.C. United, which finished last in the Eastern
Conference, saw a 13 percent drop in attendance after a 19 percent decline in 2009 from its 2008 figure.
Besides Philadelphia’s strong showing and the big bump by Seattle, the New
York Red Bulls boosted the league jump by drawing nearly 50 percent more at their new stadium in Harrison, N.J., than they did in 2009 at the Meadowlands.
MLS ATTENDANCE:
| Club (2010 Rank) | 2010 Home | 2009 Home Average (Final) | 2010/2009 plus/minus |
| Seattle (1) | 36,173 | 30,897 | +5,276 (+17%) |
| Los Angeles (2) | 21,437 | 20,416 | +1,021 (+5%) |
| Toronto FC (3) | 20,453 | 20,344 | -109 (-0.5%) |
| Philadelphia (4) | 19,254 | -- | -- |
| New York (5) | 18,441 | 12,490 | +5.951 (+47%) |
| Houston (6) | 17,310 | 17,047 | +263 (+1%) |
| Real Salt Lake (7) | 17,095 | 16,375 | +720 (+4%) |
| Chicago (8) | 15,814 | 14,688 | +1,126 (+8%) |
| Columbus (9) | 14,642 | 14,446 | +196 (+1%) |
| Chivas USA (10) | 14,576 | 15,091 | -515 (-3%) |
| D.C. United (11) | 14,532 | 16,088 | -1,556 (-13%) |
| Colorado (12) |
13,329 | 12,330 | +999 (+8%) |
| New England (13) | 12,987 | 13,731 | -744 (-5%) |
| FC Dallas (14) | 10,815 | 12,440 | -1,625 (-13%) |
| Kansas City (15) | 10,287 | 10,053 | +234 (+2%) |
| San Jose (16) | 9,659 | 14,114 | -4,455 (-32%) |
|
Leaguewide | 16,675 | 16,037 | +638 (+4%) |
| 35,953 |
| 20,672 |
| 18,379 |
Since joining the league in
2009, the Seattle Sounders have led the league in attendance, ending the Los Angeles Galaxy's five-season run at the top.
TOP MLS ATTENDANCE
AVERAGES
2010 Seattle: 36,173
2009 Seattle: 30,897
1996 Los Angeles: 28,916
2008 Los
Angeles: 26,009
2007 Los Angeles: 24,252
2005 Los Angeles: 24,204
1996 MetroStars: 23,898
2004 Los Angeles:
23,809
2003: Los Angeles: 21,983
1998 Los Angeles: 21,784
2001: D.C. United 21,518
1997 New England: 21,423
2006 Los Angeles: 20,814
2002: Colorado: 20,687
2000 Los Angeles: 20,400
1999 Columbus: 17,696
The leaguewide attendance average in 2010 was the highest since 2007 and the third-highest in league history.
MLS YEAR-BY-YEAR ATTENDANCE
AVERAGE
1996 - 17,406
1997 - 14,603
1998 - 14,312
1999 - 14,282
2000 -
13,756
2001 - 14,961
2002 - 15,821
2003 - 14,898
2004 - 15,559
2005 - 15,108
2006 - 15,504
2007 - 16,770
2008 - 16,460
2009 - 16,037
2010 - 16,675
Quality of play will dictate the rise in attendance...so far, that quality is visible sporadically...the regular season is overloaded with mediocre games because of the playoff system. Many players have expressed that they don't put out until it matters. That kind of mentality is evident on the pitch and the real futbol public doesn't pay to watch it.