The Women’s El Clasico is set to take place this week with the match drawing attention as fans will hope it may break records for the highest attended Women’s Football match in history.
Back in 2019, the record was finally broken for the highest attended football match in Women’s club history. Atletico Madrid took on Barcelona at the Wanda Metropolitano in front of a magnificent 60,000 plus people.
The rise in Women’s football has continued to grow and while Barcelona’s men may be struggling along in La Liga, the same can most definitely not be said for their women who’s staggering success is bringing in fans at a phenomenal rate.
When Barcelona Women play, they usually play at the 6,000 seater Johan Cruyff Stadium. However, Real Madrid will travel to the Camp Nou to take on their rivals in the El Clasico - a stadium with a 99,354 capacity.
Not only will this encourage more spectators to the game, but with the Women’s Euros taking place this summer, the increase in attendance at league games will hopefully mean that England will host nations to full stadiums when the tournament kicks off later in the year.
The women may still be a long way off from being able to play every match at their male counterparts’ ground, but the fact that they are able to do so in increasingly frequent occasions highlights the rapidity of the growth in support for Women’s football.
1. Manchester City vs Manchester United, September 2019, 31,213
Manchester City hosted their closest geographical rivals at the Etihad Stadium for the first time in the club’s history. A crowd of over 31,000 attended which stands as a record in the Women’s Super League. Caroline Weir helped her home side to win a tightly fought 1-0 victory over the visitors but this fixture has helped paved the way for other WSL fixtures to take place at larger stadiums. | Getty Images
2. Chelsea v Arsenal (FA Cup final), 2018, 45,423
Wembley stadium hosted the Women’s FA Cup final in May 2018 and saw a record attendance for the competition. 45,423 people watched Chelsea beat the current WSL leaders 3-1. Arsenal and the Netherlands’ Vivianne Miedema scored their only goal in the 73rd minute while Romano Bachmann scored two and Fran Kirby scored one for the Chelsea Ladies. | Arsenal FC via Getty Images
3. Athletic Bilbao v Atlético Madrid, Jan 2019, 48,121
In January 2019, Atletico Madrid travelled up to Bilbao to play in front of one of the biggest audiences in Women’s football. Atletico managed to beat their opponents 2-0 at the Instalaciones de Lezama Arena. | AFP via Getty Images
4. Monterrey v Tigres, May 2018, 51,211
The Mexican La Liga MX Femenil saw another one of the biggest attendances in Women’s football. At the final of the La Liga, UANL travelled to Monterrey, Guadalupe for the second leg of the match which saw over 50,000 people attend. UANL managed to beat their hosts 2-4 on penalties after full time ended with 4-4 on aggregate. | Getty Images