2025 FIFA Club World Cup Group Phase Overview
The group phase of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup has wrapped up, showcasing 48 matches of the total 63 scheduled for the competition, which is being held across various locations in the United States. This edition has faced significant backlash prior to its commencement, mainly due to its selection of venues situated in areas that traditionally lack a robust passion for soccer.
Attendance Statistics
Curious about the crowd turnouts at these matches? How do the attendance figures from this year’s tournament measure up against past events, such as the 1994 FIFA World Cup held in the U.S. and earlier iterations of the Club World Cup? Which teams attracted the most fans and which drew the least?
Let’s delve into the statistics surrounding this year’s event. Notably, FIFA has reported that both Mamelodi Sundowns‘ clash with Fluminense and Urawa Red Diamonds’ game against Monterrey saw a coincidental attendance of 14,312 spectators on June 25. In contrast, the match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Atletico Madrid at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, set a new benchmark for attendance this tournament, drawing 80,619 fans. This figure not only stands as the highest for the current Club World Cup, but also marks the peak in event history, surpassing the previous records set in 2000.
On the lower end of the spectrum, the match between South Korea’s Ulsan HD and Mamelodi Sundowns recorded a disheartening attendance of only 3,412 fans at the Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando on June 17. This game faced a 65-minute delay due to impending thunderstorms, and its attendance was shockingly lower than many local attractions, including Disney World, which sees that many visitors every half hour. Such figures are alarming, especially when contrasting them to events like the Wales vs. Hungary playoff in Sweden back in 1958, which witnessed an even smaller crowd of 2,823.
While this year has seen its share of low turnouts, it does not hold the record for the least attended Club World Cup match; that title belongs to a 2023 fixture in Saudi Arabia, where only 2,525 fans attended.
Average Attendance and Venue Performance
The average attendance throughout the ongoing 2025 tournament measures 34,759, a slight improvement over the typical attendance of 32,505 from previous editions before the pandemic. However, it’s essential to note that this year’s venues are much larger, which influences these numbers. Throughout the tournament, the Hard Rock Stadium has garnered the highest percentage of filled seats at 81.8%, largely bolstered by its high-profile match featuring Lionel Messi. In contrast, the Inter&Co Stadium has seen just 19.9% of its seats filled, highlighting a stark disparity.
The MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, which is anticipated to host the final of this Club World Cup and the 2026 World Cup alongside Canada and Mexico, has also struggled, with only 45% of its capacity filled thus far.
Team Performances and Group Stage Insights
Real Madrid has emerged as the most-watched team during the tournament, attracting a total of 197,474 fans and averaging 65,825 per game, while Mamelodi Sundowns falls at the other end of the spectrum, averaging only 10,577 spectators over three matches.
As for the group stages, Group B featuring PSG, Botafogo, Atletico, and Seattle Sounders led in total attendance with 289,725, averaging 48,288 per match. In sharp contrast, Group F, composed of Borussia Dortmund, Fluminense, Mamelodi Sundowns, and Ulsan HD, had only 104,026 fans, resulting in a lower average of 17,338.
Comparatively, the group stage attendance of this year’s Club World Cup starkly pales against the 1994 World Cup in the U.S., which recorded an impressive average of 67,526. Even the 2022 Qatar World Cup’s group stage surpassed this year’s figures with an average of 51,188, while the average attendance from Premier League matches stands at 40,423 for the 2024-25 season.
Conclusion
It’s important to consider the context here: the rebranded Club World Cup doesn’t match the global allure of the World Cup or the Premier League, hence the anticipated lower attendance figures. As the tournament moves into its knockout stages, FIFA will hope for a surge in crowd numbers, particularly wanting to avoid the sight of numerous empty seats that marred several group stage matches so far. With the global interest sparked by the upcoming World Cup, the organization is likely to see better attendance metrics next year, though pricing and accessibility issues may still challenge fan turnout.
