Nothing quite shows the rise in popularity of women's soccer like the attendance records that have fallen over the last few years.

On Saturday, Bay FC smashed all existing records when 40,091 packed out Oracle Park, the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, to see its match against the Washington Spirit in the National Women's Soccer League. The attendance was also the highest at a women's professional sports game in U.S. history.

Like Bay's history-making match at Oracle Park, the Chicago Stars made history in 2024 by playing at Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs.

One should note that all of the attendances in the top 10 have come since 2022. In part due to the San Diego Wave and the now-retired U.S. women's national team legend Alex Morgan, including her final match before her retirement in September 2024.

Wave's home of Snapdragon Stadium, capacity 35,000, is the second-biggest stadium in the NWSL behind the Seattle Reign's Lumen Field, capacity 68,740. The Reign's record attendance from October 2024 does appear on this list, and it's notable because it was Megan Rapinoe's final-ever league match in Seattle.

So, with the latest history-making moment in mind, here are the top 10 highest attendances in NWSL history.

10. San Diego Wave vs. Chicago Stars - 26,215 | Snapdragon Stadium (10/16/2022)

9. San Diego Wave vs. North Carolina Courage - 26,515 | Snapdragon Stadium (9/8/2024)

8. San Diego Wave vs. Racing Louisville - 30,312 | Snapdragon Stadium (10/15/23)

7. San Diego Wave vs. Chicago Stars - 30,854 | Snapdragon Stadium (3/25/23)

6. San Diego Wave vs. Angel City - 32,000 | Snapdragon Stadium (9/17/23)

5. San Diego Wave vs. KC Current - 32,066 | Snapdragon Stadium (3/23/24)

4. San Diego Wave vs. Seattle Reign - 32,262 | Snapdragon Stadium (11/5/23)

3. Seattle Reign vs. Washington Spirit - 34,148 | Lumen Field (10/6/23)

2. Chicago Stars vs. Bay FC - 35,038 | Wrigley Field (6/8/2024)

1. Bay FC vs. Washington Spirit - 40,091 | Oracle Park (8/23/2025)

A moment for WUSA

Before the NWSL, there was the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA). The league formed in 2001 on the back of the U.S.’s success at the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup and was home to the world's biggest women's soccer players at the turn of the century.

To this day, one of the largest U.S. professional women's sports league attendances is when 34,148 watched Mia Hamm's Washington Freedom face off against Brandi Chastain's Bay Area CyberRays at RFK Stadium on April 14, 2001. That attendance would still crack the top three in the post-NWSL era.

So, while it may not be an official NWSL attendance, for the sake of soccer history, it's important to make a note of that attendance and the record it held for two decades.

More NWSL on Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as The Top 10 Most Attended Games in NWSL History.

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