Very impressive figures, both absolute and %age increase.
The IL Premiership has enjoyed a similar increase: 2018/19: 1,089 vs 2022/23 to date: 1,520 = +39.6%:
https://www.irishleaguesupporters.com/attendances.php
To some extent you might consider this is down to certain individual clubs boosting their crowds (eg DCFC/Shams/Cork and Cleraine/Larne/Glentoran)
Yet both leagues have also had clubs whose attendances have declined.
I wonder might this be a reaction to Covid i.e. people have appreciated the opportunity to get out and about again, with big crowds leading to improved atmospheres, which in turn has led to even bigger crowds? There is evidence of this for lower leagues in England, esp the National league/5th tier:
https://sportsgazette.co.uk/2021-202...l-attendances/
This season's crowds in the NL arepretty amazing:
https://www.footballwebpages.co.uk/n...ue/attendances:
By contrast, I know that Rugby League in England was very worried that crowds had actually declined post-Covid, as this article from August 2021 indicates:
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/20...s-rugby-league
(Not sure whether this has continued through 2022, but the article speculates that with RL fans being older than average, maybe they were more cautious about mixing in crowds even after lockdown ended?)
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