More than 400,000 seats were left empty during the opening round of the expanded FIFA Club World Cup in the United States, with stadiums only 56.8% full on average.
Despite over 550,000 fans attending across 16 matches, half of the games drew crowds below 50% capacity.
The lowest turnout was just 3,412 spectators for Mamelodi Sundowns vs. Ulsan HD, filling only 13.6% of Florida’s Inter & Co Stadium.
The tournament is being seen as a warm-up for next year’s men’s World Cup, but FIFA remains hopeful, saying the top-selling group stage matches are still ahead.
FIFA has spent over $50 million on marketing to promote this summer’s Club World Cup tournament in the United States, including increasing their original budget by millions in the past month as they sought to drive attendances for the tournament, according to multiple people… pic.twitter.com/exHE6OneFh
— The Athletic | Football (@TheAthleticFC) June 16, 2025
Auckland City suffered a 10-nil loss to Bayern Munich in a group which include the prestigiously famous Benfica and Boca Juniors.
If the competition has been diluted due to political correctness then of course heaps of people wouldn’t bother turning up.
People want to watch high quality football, not bullmanure.