Women’s Super League Clubs’ Average Attendance Nearly Tripled in 2022/23 Season

Women’s Super League Clubs’ Average Attendance Nearly Tripled in 2022/23 Season

Although still far below Premier League’s viewership numbers, women’s football in England saw surging revenues and attendance levels last season.

According to data presented by SportsLens.com, Women’s Super League Clubs` average attendance nearly tripled year-over-year and hit 5,616 in the 2022/23 season.

Arsenal WFC’s Average Attendance Skyrocketed 379%, Manchester City WFC Follows with a 316% Increase

The success of the Lionesses in the UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 has triggered a significant uplift in attendance. According to Deloitte’s 2023 Annual Review of Football Finance, Women’s Super League clubs’ average attendance surged by nearly 200% last season, with an average of 5,616 fans watching every match, up from 1,923 a season before.

The survey showed Arsenal WFC, the most successful team in the women’s game in England and a founding member of the Women’s Super League, saw the biggest year-year growth, with its average attendance skyrocketing by a massive 379%. In the 2021/22 season, an average of 3,544 fans watched matches of Arsenal’s women’s team. This figure jumped to nearly 17,000 last season.

Manchester City WFC saw the second-largest attendance increase of 316%; its average viewership jumped from 1,925 to over 8,000. Manchester United followed with a 201% year-over-year growth and an average of 10,699 fans watching the matches, the second-largest number in England’s elite women’s game.

Statistics show Chelsea`s average attendance jumped from 2,969 to 5,969 season-over-season, while Tottenham Hotspur`s more than doubled and hit 3,866.

Matchday Revenues Make Less than 10% of WSL Clubs’ Total Revenues

The triple-digit growth of the average attendance in the Women’s Super League will most likely boost matchday revenue for future seasons, which accounted for less than 10% of WSL clubs’ revenues in season 2021/22.

In a record-breaking year for women’s football, WSL clubs generated £32 million in revenue or 60% more than in the season 2020/21. However, Deloitte’s survey showed huge differences between clubs across the Women’s League. More than 70% of revenues in the 2021/22 season came from Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, and Manchester City, the top four clubs in England’s elite women’s game.