Why Are There So Many Empty Seats at the Club World Cup?

Why are there so many empty stadium seats at the 2025 Club World Cup?

An ironic scene unfolded during the opening match of the Club World Cup, which featured the host team Inter Miami against the African representative, Al Ahly. Not many spectators attended the match held at Hard Rock Stadium, Florida, United States, on Sunday (15/6/2025) morning WIB.

The tournament, which serves as a showcase for outstanding players from top clubs around the world, was surprisingly not attended by many spectators. From the live broadcast, it was evident that several sections of the stadium were not fully occupied.

Indications that the Club World Cup would be less popular had been felt several months prior. The suspicion grew stronger after observing FIFA's decision to lower ticket prices for the matches. In December 2024, the cheapest ticket for the match was priced at 349 US dollars.

A month later, the ticket price was lowered again to $230. A few days before the opening, The Athletic reported that the cheapest ticket price was cut to $20 for four tickets, or about $4 each. FIFA offered several schools and colleges in Florida the cheap tickets in the hope that the stadium would be filled.

Of the 32 participating teams, none of the champions from the English Premier League, La Liga, and Serie A this season, which are the three top European leagues, are present. Napoli, Liverpool, and Barcelona, the champions of each of the three top European leagues, did not participate due to the qualification requirements set by FIFA.

On the other hand, the presence of Lionel Messi does not seem to be a significant draw for spectators. The residents of the United States are reluctant to spend money to watch Messi, whom they can see at any time in Major League Soccer (MLS).

The next cause is the saturated US market. In addition to the Club World Cup, the Concacaf Gold Cup tournament is also being held simultaneously in the US. The Gold Cup features the national teams of the US and Mexico, both competing with their full strength.

What will the stadium atmosphere be like at the sixth match of the 2025 Club World Cup?

The sixth match in the 2025 Club World Cup, between Chelsea and Los Angeles FC, confirmed concerns about the lack of enthusiasm among supporters to fill the stadium stands. The Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, United States, hosted the first match of the 2025 Club World Cup, witnessing the victory of "The Blues" over the host representative, LAFC.

Chelsea's status as one of the best teams in the English League and the champion of the Europa Conference League has proven insufficient for attracting spectators. This is believed to be the reason why the stadium stands appeared empty on screen.

Official match data indicates that only 22,137 supporters were present in the stands. The average audience was concentrated in the lowest tier of the stands. The number of occupied seats was very minimal in the second tier. Meanwhile, the third tier was completely devoid of spectators.

The number of spectators set a record low for international matches held at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The previous lowest attendance was recorded when Mexico drew against Uzbekistan in a friendly match in November 2023, which saw an attendance of 33,817 supporters.

"I think this environment is strange, the stadium is almost empty rather than full. We are professionals who must adapt to this situation," said Chelsea Manager Enzo Maresca, as reported by the BBC.

What is the biggest winning score in the 2025 Club World Cup so far?

Bayern Munich and Auckland City are like earth and sky. From various aspects, they are separated by a vast distance. Status, capability, and squad value mark that disparity. Therefore, when Bayern won against Auckland City by a double-digit score of 10-0, it seemed like something inevitable.

Bayern arrived in the United States with the primary goal of securing a title. Each victory will bring "Die Roten," the nickname for Bayern, closer to a goal that could provide them with funding of up to 125 million US dollars.

Bayern is the champion of the German League, and all of its players are top-level professional athletes. Meanwhile, Auckland City is a "small" team that is the only amateur team in the 2025 Club World Cup.

Auckland City is a working-class club. All players representing the club against Bayern have full-time jobs and must take annual leave just to make this trip.

What are the hottest and most watched matches in the 2025 Club World Cup so far?

The Argentine club, Boca Juniors, faced a bitter reality in their first match of the 2025 Club World Cup. Although they played as if they were at home and initially took a two-goal lead, they had to settle for a draw with Benfica, the club from Portugal.

The heated duel that ended in a 2-2 draw took place in Group C at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami, on Tuesday (17/6/2025 WIB). Three red cards between Boca and Benfica can somewhat illustrate the atmosphere and intensity of the match. Both teams finished the contest with ten players.

It is only natural that the match was intense. The stadium was filled with around 55,000 spectators, the majority of whom were supporters of Boca. Boca was reluctant to waste that support, especially after managing to take a 2-0 lead early in the match. However, Benfica was able to equalize the score through two players from Argentina.