The Women’s World Cup gave the sport a huge boost in co-host country New Zealand, where new attendance records were set, according to the head of the country’s football governing body.
On Tuesday, a full crowd of 43,217 people watched Spain beat Sweden 2-1 in an exciting semi-final match at Auckland’s Eden Park. This was the same number of people who showed up for a men’s or women’s match in New Zealand, which was the most ever.
Football officials said that more than 700,000 people went to the 29 Women’s World Cup games in New Zealand. The rest of the games are being played in Australia.
Andrew Pragnell, the head of New Zealand Football, said that the way football, especially women’s football, is seen in New Zealand has changed a lot because of this event.
On the first day of the event, 42,137 people went to Auckland to watch New Zealand beat Norway. This was the first time that the record for attendance was beaten.
It was broken when Spain’s win over Switzerland in the last 16 and Sweden’s win over Japan in the quarter-final both drew full crowds of 43,217 to Eden Park. That number was also reached at Tuesday’s semi-final.
“This tournament has set a new standard for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, starting with the historic opening game at Eden Park, where the Football Ferns beat Norway,” said Pragnell.
Pragnell said that the fact that New Zealand held the women’s cricket and rugby World Cups in 2022 showed that the country can “deliver world-class major events.”