📊 Inside the Stands: WSL Attendance Trends 2024–25
How Arsenal raised the bar, why the league average dipped, and what the 2024–25 WSL season tells us about growth, gaps, and what's next.
Introduction: Growth meets consolidation
The 2024-25 Barclays Women's Super League saw strong fan turnout, attracting 922,016 spectators across 132 matches. This equates to an average attendance of 6,985 per match, down 5.6% from the record 7,397 average in 2023-24. This slight dip after two years of sharp post-pandemic growth could be attributed to the lack of a major summer tournament in 2024 (no Lionesses at the Olympics). Despite this, overall attendance remains dramatically higher than just a few years ago (for context, 2021-22 averaged under 2,000). The chart below illustrates the WSL's attendance boom in recent seasons, with 2024-25 still among the highest on record.
Average WSL Attendance per Match – The post-2022 surge is evident, with 2023-24 peaking at 7,397 and a slight correction to 6,985 in 2024-25. (Data for 2020-21 omitted due to COVID-19 spectator restrictions.)
Record crowds
High-profile fixtures at Premier League venues continued to draw record audiences. The single-match attendance record for 2024-25 was 56,784 (Arsenal vs Tottenham at Emirates Stadium, Feb 2025). Although just shy of the all-time WSL record (60,160 at Arsenal vs Man Utd in Feb 2024), this enormous North London Derby crowd underscores the new normal of big-stadium women's games. Many clubs set new individual records: for example, Chelsea's home derby vs Arsenal in Jan 2025 drew 34,302 at Stamford Bridge, the largest crowd ever for a Chelsea WSL home game.
Over half of WSL and Championship clubs achieved a record league attendance during 2023-24, and 2024-25 saw that momentum continue. Such marquee events helped push cumulative WSL attendance near the one-million mark (combined with the second-tier, it surpassed 1,000,000 for the first time in 2023-24).
Team-by-Team Average Attendances
WSL attendances in 2024-25 varied widely by club. Table 1 below breaks down the average home league attendance for each team and compares it to the previous season. Arsenal once again led the league by a huge margin, while newcomers and smaller clubs drew more modest crowds. Notably, only Arsenal averaged five-figure crowds, reflecting the impact of regularly hosting matches at the Emirates Stadium. Chelsea came closest, boosted by three big Stamford Bridge fixtures, but still finished just below the 10,000 mark.
Table 1:
Sources: Club and league reports. †Bristol City was relegated in 2024, replaced by Crystal Palace in 2024-25 (whose lower crowds impacted the league average).
📈 Arsenal – Leading the League On and Off the Pitch
As shown above, Arsenal’s WSL-leading average attendance of 28,808 dwarfed the rest of the league — a figure that rivals mid-table men’s Premier League clubs.
They played 9 of their 11 home matches at the Emirates Stadium, setting a new standard for scale in the women’s game.
Crowds routinely ranged between 30,000 and 50,000, including two fixtures that surpassed 50,000:
54,115 vs Liverpool
52,217 vs Chelsea
Even their lowest Emirates turnout — 5,539 vs Leicester (midweek) — was near the league average, underscoring Arsenal’s exceptional drawing power.
Arsenal are the only club to turn top-tier attendances into a consistent reality — transforming the Emirates into a true WSL home.
🔵 Chelsea – A Hybrid Model Driving Growth
Chelsea averaged 9,373 fans per game, bolstered by three high-attendance fixtures at Stamford Bridge:
19,499 vs Manchester City
34,302 vs Arsenal
21,327 vs Liverpool
The other eight home games were hosted at Kingsmeadow (capacity ~4,800), with typical attendances between 3,000 and 4,500.
Total home attendance: 103,103 — the only other club to surpass the 100k mark.
🔴 Manchester United – Post-World Cup Drop-Off
Manchester United’s average home attendance fell from 10,956 to 7,390 in 2024–25 — a 32% decline, the largest in the league. This drop likely reflects a combination of factors, including the overall post-World Cup cooling of fan interest, a dip in national team momentum, and the departure of high-profile players such as goalkeeper Mary Earps.
They hosted two games at Old Trafford:
8,761 vs West Ham
31,465 vs Manchester City
The other nine matches were held at Leigh Sports Village, typically drawing 3,000–6,000.
Season total attendance: 81,285 (down from 120,000+ in 2023–24)
🔵 Manchester City – Boosted by the Etihad
City averaged 7,017 fans per home game, placing 6th in the league.
Most fixtures were at the Joie Stadium (~5,000 seated, ~7,000 total), with gates between 2,500–4,000.
However, three matches at the Etihad Stadium lifted their average:
22,497 vs Manchester United
11,302 vs Chelsea
10,319 vs Tottenham
Without these, City’s regular home gates were among the league’s lower mid-table.
⚖️ The Mid-Table Mix – Spurs, Liverpool, Villa & Co.
Clubs like Tottenham, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Brighton, and Leicester typically averaged between 2,000 and 7,000 in 2024–25 — with occasional spikes from marquee fixtures or derby matchups.
Liverpool, in particular, benefited from a three-match run at Anfield, including:
17,484 vs Manchester City
15,596 vs Manchester United
15,376 vs Everton (Merseyside Derby)
The remaining eight matches were held at the Totally Wicked Stadium, where attendances ranged between 2,971 and 5,786.
That mix helped Liverpool finish with an overall average of 7,023, among the league’s best outside the traditional top three.
Aston Villa (7,067) and Brighton (4,176) also posted strong numbers for non-big-six clubs.
Leicester (3,107) and Tottenham (3,028) hovered just above 3,000, often relying on smaller venues but maintaining steady community engagement.
⚠️ At the Lower End – West Ham and Everton
West Ham averaged 1,838 fans per home game in 2024–25, with attendances ranging from 1,219 to 3,300.
Everton, slightly higher at 1,956, saw a wide range due to a one-off spike — including a season-high 9,823 for a marquee fixture — but also recorded the league’s lowest home turnout: just 754.
Despite Everton’s higher average, their numbers were heavily venue-dependent, with most fixtures at Walton Hall Park(capacity ~2,200) drawing closer to the 1,000–1,800 range.
These disparities underscore the infrastructural and commercial gap between the WSL’s elite and its lower-resourced clubs — particularly in stadium access, local fanbase engagement, and marketing reach.
🔄 The Promotion Effect – Crystal Palace vs Bristol City
Promotion and relegation significantly impacted league-wide figures.
In 2023–24, Bristol City averaged 6,974 — thanks to games at Ashton Gate
In 2024–25, they were replaced by Crystal Palace, who averaged just 1,884
That swap removed one of the WSL’s highest-drawing sides and introduced its lowest, helping to flatten attendance trends across the table.
Only Arsenal and Chelsea crossed the 100,000 total home attendance mark.
📌 Closing thoughts
The WSL’s attendance boom is entering a more complex phase. Arsenal are blazing a trail with elite-level crowds and stadium consistency. Chelsea, City, and United are mixing ambition with pragmatism. But for many other clubs, resource constraints and venue limitations remain real barriers.
As the league matures, the next step is raising the floor, not just the ceiling — ensuring that more clubs can tap into the growing demand for women’s football and provide the infrastructure to support it.
2024–25 wasn’t a step back. It was a pivot toward sustainability, and the data shows that the WSL’s audience is still very much in the stands.
💬 What do you think?
Which club's strategy impressed you most this season — and where does the WSL need to go next in the attendance evolution?
📊 Updated header visual chart for accuracy (May 19): now with properly scaled y-axis to reflect true attendance differences.
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