The NLL finished its season this past weekend, drawing 15,182 fans to a sold-out Sasktel Centre in Saskatoon as the Saskatchewan Rush won the league title. The Rush’s first season in the market was a boon for NLL regular-season attendance in ’16, as the club saw a 78% spike in attendance compared to last season in Edmonton, when it also won the title. Overall, the NLL averaged 9,152 fans per game in ’16, up 2% from last season, when it had its lowest average figure since ’03. The Buffalo Bandits led all teams with 15,833 fans per game, up 11% from ’15. Also seeing a strong uptick were the Rochester Knighthawks, up 16%. While the Rush saw gains in switching markets for ’16, the Georgia Swarm did not see such an increase after leaving St. Paul, Minn., for the Atlanta suburbs. During its first season in Gwinnett County, the Swarm averaged 4,667 fans per game, down 46% from the final season at Xcel Energy Center last season. The New England Black Wolves saw a 4% drop during its second season in Uncasville, Conn. The club played in Philadelphia until '14.
|
NLL REGULAR-SEASON ATTENDANCE TREND
|
|
YEAR
|
TEAMS
|
GAMES
|
AVG.
|
YEAR
|
TEAMS
|
GAMES
|
AVG.
|
|
'16
|
9
|
81
|
9,152
|
'09
|
12
|
72
|
10,018
|
|
'15
|
9
|
81
|
8,970
|
'08
|
12
|
72
|
10,475
|
|
'14
|
9
|
81
|
9,425
|
'07
|
13
|
72
|
10,293
|
|
'13
|
9
|
72
|
9,662
|
'06
|
11
|
72
|
10,703
|
|
'12
|
9
|
72
|
9,469
|
'05
|
10
|
72
|
10,237
|
|
'11
|
10
|
72
|
9,819
|
'04
|
10
|
72
|
9,885
|
|
'10
|
11
|
72
|
9,559
|
'03
|
12
|
72
|
8,757
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
'16 NLL REGULAR-SEASON ATTENDANCE
|
| TEAM |
GMS
|
TOTAL
|
AVG.
|
PREV.
|
% +/-
|
| Buffalo Bandits |
9
|
142,497
|
15,833
|
14,316
|
10.6%
|
| Colorado Mammoth |
9
|
124,488
|
13,832
|
14,787
|
-6.5%
|
| Saskatchewan Rush* |
9
|
105,633
|
11,737
|
6,578
|
78.4%
|
| Calgary Roughnecks |
9
|
103,239
|
11,471
|
11,642
|
-1.5%
|
| Toronto Rock |
9
|
82,431
|
9,159
|
10,011
|
-8.5%
|
| Rochester Knighthawks |
9
|
73,476
|
8,164
|
7,051
|
15.8%
|
| Georgia Swarm** |
9
|
42,003
|
4,667
|
8,699
|
-46.4%
|
| Vancouver Stealth |
9
|
33,822
|
3,758
|
3,734
|
0.6%
|
| New England Black Wolves |
9
|
33,759
|
3,751
|
3,914
|
-4.2%
|
| NLL TOTALS |
81
|
741,348
|
9,152
|
8,970
|
2.0%
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
NOTES: * = Played last season in Edmonton before moving to Saskatoon. ** = Played last season in St. Paul, Minn., before moving to Duluth, Ga.
