Over half a million supporters attend ‘bumper’ opening weekend for EFL season

Over half a million football fans enjoyed a bumper opening weekend of football in the Sky Bet Championship, League One and League Two

543,168 supporters attended grounds up and down the country, making it the highest aggregate opening weekend attendance this century. That figure is over 90,000 more than the opening day of 2022/23, representing a 20.7 per cent rise.

Away from the grounds the audience figures painted a similarly positive picture with the opening weekend of the EFL Championship the most watched on Sky Sports ever, with an average of 631,000 viewers across all four matches, up 77 per cent compared to last season.

Viewing figures for Gillette Soccer Saturday, with new host Simon Thomas, were also up 50 per cent on the opening weekend last season. In the Sky Bet Championship, there was an impressive rise of 44.2 per cent in attendances compared to the opening weekend of 2022/23 with 317,272 supporters attending across 12 fixtures.

Ipswich’s victory over Sunderland was the highest attended fixture of the weekend, with over 44,000 supporters at the Stadium of Light, while Leeds United and Leicester City both welcomed over 30,000 in their first games back in the Championship.

The fixture between Leeds United and Cardiff City was also the most watched Championship fixture on Sky Sports, excluding Play-Offs, since 2017, with a peak audience of nearly a million viewers.

In Sky Bet League One, Derby County saw 29,957 supporters at Pride Park in their match against Wigan Athletic, with 163,223 supporters in grounds across English football’s third tier, a 9.6 per cent rise on last season’s opening day.

EFL chief executive, Trevor Birch, commented: “With over half a million supporters in stadiums across the country, a record number watching at home and goals flowing at games in every division, it really was a fantastic opening EFL weekend for all involved.

“Attendances last year were the highest in seven decades and the evidence from the opening weekend suggests the appetite for live football is only continuing to rise.

“This, of course, wouldn’t be possible without the unwavering support and commitment of our Clubs and their supporters. It is testament to the ever improving quality on show across the EFL and it is no surprise that so many people want to be part of the live game experience.”

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

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