Taking Attendance 4/16/2017: Almost All the Pros

Almost every team in Major League Soccer, the United Soccer League and the North American Soccer League has played at least one home game¹Toronto and Rochester have their home openers over the next two weeks, while Orange County has theirs on May 6., so let’s take a look at how each of our three pro men’s leagues are doing at the turnstiles²Actually, we don’t have turnstile counts, just announced figures, which, standard caveats, blah blah blah.. First, the numbers for MLS, the USL and the NASL and then a few notes.

NOTES:

• Atlanta United has six more games at Bobby Dodd Stadium before they move into Mercedes-Benz Stadium on July 30. If they hold their average at BDS (not a certainty), they’d only have to average a little under 39,000 at the new stadium to break Seattle’s all-time record for total attendance in a season³752,192, set in 2015.
• It’s early, but the top seven (and eight of the top 10) teams in average announced attendance in MLS⁴If you call it “the MLS,” stop. have joined the league since 2007.
• It’s even earlier in the NASL, which went through a tumultuous off-season that left it with just eight teams, but the league is averaging just a touch over 5,000 a game for its first dozen dates. The concern spot at the moment is San Francisco, where the expansion Deltas drew a meh 4,133 for their inaugural and followed that up with a disastrous 1,739 for game two. The Cosmos have relocated to Coney Island and drew a robust 6,274 for their opener. They traditionally see their crowds drop after opening day, but let’s see if this location is better than the one on Long Island.
• FC Cincinnati’s home-opening crowd of 23,144⁵Touted by USL as a home-opener record, which it surely is, as if anybody keeps track of such things. was not a record for all FCC games (they drew 24,376 for their home finale last September 17 against Orlando City B, and 30,187 for a playoff game). Nor was it a DII record. The Seattle Sounders drew 25,515 on July 28, 2002 for the first game in what was then Seahawks Stadium⁶Minnesota United announced a crowd of 34,047 on August 2, 2014 against Ottawa, but it was part of a doubleheader that included Manchester City against Olympiakos, so Seattle holds the regular season standalone record..
• The re-branded and relocated⁷From one side of the Valley to the other. Phoenix Rising FC has sold out both of their first two games at their new complex and the signing of Didier Drogba will probably sell more tickets and certainly more jerseys. I went to their second game (pictured above) and thought the stadium was functional and intimate. Its location is good and the pitch is very good. While I’m not quite as optimistic as this local columnist, who seems to think the Drogba signing means MLS is a lock, I am pleased to see an organization that seems to be doing things the right way here.
• USL’s independent teams are averaging 5,500 a game⁸Thanks, Cincinnati., while the MLS O&Os, which are averaging 1,773 and occupy the bottom six and nine of the bottom ten spots in the attendance table.
• The National Women’s Soccer League just opened its season this past weekend, and I’ll have more on them when everyone has played at least one home game. And, new this year, more robust reporting on the NPSL, whose California and Arizona teams are already playing. I’m having more success getting NPSL numbers this year and hope to be able to piece together a much better picture of their attendance than we’ve ever had before.
• As always, corrections and additions are welcome in the comments.