Nearly half a million empty seats at FIFA Club World Cup

Despite high expectations from the organizers, the FIFA Club World Cup has so far been a big disappointment in terms of attendance.

Images of empty stands have become familiar at this year's FIFA Club World Cup - Photo: REUTERS

The 16 matches in the opening round of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup took place in 9 stadiums, with a total capacity of 979,373 seats. However, only 556,369 people came to the stadium, accounting for 56.8%.

There were 423,004 empty seats at this year's FIFA Club World Cup. This is an alarming number, because this tournament is also considered a "test" for next year's World Cup, with most of the matches held in the US.

The most watched match was the big match between PSG and Atletico Madrid, with 80,619 people in attendance. This is not surprising, because this match was also the highlight of the first round.

Meanwhile, the opening match between Inter Miami and Al Ahly also achieved impressive numbers. The number of spectators attending this match was 60,927, while the capacity of the Hard Rock Stadium is over 65,000 seats. This was a match with the appearance of superstar Lionel Messi, contributing to the effect of attracting viewers to the stadium.

However, except for matches featuring big teams or stars, the majority of spectators at the FIFA Club World Cup are currently quite quiet.

Of the first 16 games, half saw attendances below 50% of the stadium’s capacity. The quietest match was the clash between South African side Mamelodi Sundowns and South Korean side Ulsan HD, with just 3,412 fans attending the 25,500-seat Inter & Co Stadium in Florida.

Interestingly, most of the matches with the highest attendance are those featuring teams from Brazil or Argentina. These are the world ’s football powerhouses with a large fan base. In addition, traveling from South America to a North American country like the United States is relatively easy. Therefore, they have an advantage in going to the stadium to watch and cheer for their favorite team.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/gan-nua-trieu-ghe-trong-tai-fifa-club-world-cup-20250620080201942.htm