Heat wave, lack of star power shrink Club World Cup crowds

From full, to some, to hardly any.

Those have been the types of crowds Bank of America Stadium has seen during three of the four matches it has hosted in June throughout the FIFA Club World Cup. And it was at its lowest yet during Chelsea’s 4-1 extra-time win over Benfica on Saturday afternoon. Last Sunday, 70,248 people — 4,600 short of capacity — attended Charlotte’s first FIFA Club World Cup match, where Real Madrid defeated Pachuca, 3-1. The attendance ranked among the highest compared to other match sites across the country, but it’s rapidly declined since.

The attendance was cut in half Tuesday afternoon. Just over 33,000 people came to watch Benfica upset Bayern Munich. But, surely, the crowd would ramp back up for a weekend matchup, featuring one of the most popular soccer clubs in the world, right?

The attendance only got worse. The stadium was a quarter full. After a weather delay that paused the game in the 83rd minute for almost two hours, the crowd became nothing.

It’s all part of a wider trend plaguing the tournament: Crowd sizes are mixed. There are empty seats everywhere.

How are attendances faring?

The Club World Cup, which is serving as a trial run for the 2026 World Cup taking place across North America, has never reached the height of FIFA’s most popular competition.

So, the Club World Cup underwent some changes this year. It’s expanded to feature 32 teams instead of seven. There’s a group and knockout phase similar to the World Cup. It’s being held in the United States for the first time to appeal to American audiences. The midday game times work for European and African audiences.

And it all has been met with mixed results.

Over 80,000 fans attended Paris Saint-Germain’s win over Atlético Madrid at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, but fewer than 3,500 saw South Korea’s Ulsan HD face South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns in Orlando, Florida. The average attendance is 34,759 per match. During the group stage, Bank of America filled 69.1 percent of its seats, making it one of the most successful stadiums in the tournament.

Heat is a factor

While Chelsea and Benfica saw cooler temperatures on Saturday that peaked at 90 degrees, the East Coast has experienced a heat wave that has affected players and fans throughout the tournament.

On Tuesday, Benfica and Bayern Munich played in 97-degree weather that felt like 105 due to the midday start time. FIFA enforces rules during extreme weather, including mandatory cooling breaks around the 30th and 75th minutes. The breaks are no longer than three minutes.

Clubs have been preparing for the heat through acclimation tactics during practice, but coaches and players still felt the impact of the weather. There were more stoppages and a constant supply of water, ice and wet towels were given to those on the pitch.

“You gotta be fit to play in all of these games,” SiriusXM FC radio host and former soccer player Tony Meola said. “You gotta be ready to go. It’s never easy. And I think one thing that the players in the Club World Cup are getting a sense of is what MLS players go through on a weekly basis during the summer. Some places are obviously hotter than others. It’s a challenge.”

The Mecklenburg Emergency Medical Services Agency prepared for the heat weeks ahead of the match, but it’s been hard on fans, contributing to the tournament’s mixed reviews.

Popular players are missing

There have also been multiple star players missing from the Club World Cup.

On June 22, forward Kylian Mbappé missed Real Madrid’s game against Pachuca after he was hospitalized because of illness. Mbappé has yet to play in a tournament game. He’s scored 31 goals during the 2024-25 season.

Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson was also suspended after receiving a red card against Flamengo in the competition. Low attendance has in part been attributed to key players’ absences.

If you go: Final Club World Cup match in Charlotte

On Monday, the final FIFA Club World Cup match in Charlotte between Inter Milan and Fluminense will start at 3 p.m. in Bank of America Stadium. Tickets can be purchased through FIFA’s official website, or authorized partner sites including TicketMaster and SeatGeek. Prices range from $50 to over $200.

The match will also be streamed live and for free on DAZN.

Observer sports reporter Alex Zietlow contributed to this report.

This story was originally published June 29, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Heat wave, lack of star power shrink Club World Cup crowds."

Emma Moon

The Charlotte Observer

Emma Moon recently graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s degree in Media and Journalism, and English and Comparative Literature. During her time at UNC, Emma served as the assistant sports editor and summer sports editor for The Daily Tar Heel, the university’s independent student newspaper. In these roles, she primarily covered UNC football, men’s basketball, women’s soccer and baseball.