Swiss fans during the 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship in Slovakia. The host country of this year’s host had the highest average attendance outside of the NHL.
photo: Matt Zambonin / HHOF-IIHF Images
The hockey season has come to an abrupt end in most European countries due to the coronavirus pandemic. It did so in a season that saw attendance figures roar in most countries before arenas had to shut the door to help prevent the virus from spreading.
The top-11 European countries in term of attendance in the top league all saw the numbers increase and Switzerland’s National League, again the league with the highest attendance, broke the 7000 mark in average attendance as the first ice hockey league in Europe. This was one of the results in the International Ice Hockey Federation’s annual European attendance study.
Scroll down to see the rankings including Europe’s top-100 clubs.
Note: games in closed arenas due to the coronavirus situation – as it happened for clubs in Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland – were not taken into the attendance average calculation.
In Switzerland the average attendance grew by 1.8 per cent to 7074 fans with the same twelve teams as last season. The Lausanne Hockey Club was the biggest growth contributor as it opened its new arena, which is also a venue for the 2020 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, and with the higher capacity increased its average to 8548 fans. Lausanne had the third-highest average in Switzerland and moved from 27th to 13th place in Europe.
The German DEL moved to second place in Europe with a 5-per-cent increase and 6523 fans in average. 11 out of 14 teams had increasing numbers, the most Kolner Haie, which took first place with 13,333 fans in average for first place in the country.
The Russian-based cross-border Kontinental Hockey League dropped to third place despite an increase of 1.4 per cent to 6486 spectators in average.
Behind the top-3 the ranking remained mostly the same with the Swedish Hockey League (6056 fans, +3.9%), the Czech Extraliga (5724, +6%), the Finnish Liiga (4246, +0.1%), the Austria-based cross-border league EBEL (3163, +6.5%) and the Elite Ice Hockey League in the United Kingdom (3043, 6.8%), which also saw its numbers go up significantly in the season after Great Britain’s successful stay in the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. In the Czech Republic Jaromir Jagr and his hometown team Rytiri Kladno were seen as a major contributor for growing attendances around the country.
The biggest increase was seen in Slovakia in the season after hosting the 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. The average attendance went up by 43.1 per cent to 2,379 fans. This was mostly thanks to the re-integration of Slovan Bratislava (5241), which returned in the domestic league after its KHL adventure, but also most other clubs had higher numbers, most notably HC Kosice (5221), which was happy to welcome its old rival from the capital. With Dukla Michalovce, a team promoted to the league reached third place with 3448 fans also contributing to the increase.
The top-10 ends with the French Ligue Magnus, which saw its numbers go up by 13.1% to 1940 fans. The Angers Ducs had the biggest growth thanks to their new arena and topped the charts with 3425 fans in average.
Denmark had its numbers go up after hosting the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship for the first time in 2018 and this season they increased again by 7 per cent to 1,632 in average and a move up to 11th place.
The best-visited European club remains – since 2002 – SC Bern from Switzerland. In average 16,237 spectators came to the arena in the Swiss capital – the highest average attendance outside of the NHL.
SKA St. Petersburg remains in second place with 13,594 fans. The Russian giant was the KHL team with the best attendance also thanks to its outdoor game that starts to become a tradition.
Germany’s Kolner Haie moved up to third place with 13,333 fans at the expense of Eisbaren Berlin with 12,901 while another German team, Adler Mannheim with 11,891 fans, completes the top-5.
Belarusian KHL team Dynamo Minsk (10,666), Frolunda Gothenburg from Sweden (10,579) and for the first time Czech club Sparta Prague (10,333) also hit five digits. The ZSC Lions Zurich (9349) and Spartak Moscow (8913) complete the top-10 in Europe.
Europe’s top-100 also include seven teams that play in a second-tier league in their countries led by Czech team HC Ceske Budejovice, which reached 44th place with 5843 fans.
The top-100 teams come from twelve different countries including 20 from Russia, 15 each from Germany and Sweden, 14 from the Czech Republic, 13 from Switzerland, 11 from Finland, three each from Austria and the United Kingdom, two each from Kazakhstan and Slovakia, and one each from Belarus and Latvia.
One new entry missed the top-100 by just one spot. Humo Tashkent from Uzbekistan, which joined the second-tier Russian league VHL, was 101st with 3,680 fans in average and also had a farm team in the Kazakh championship. Uzbekistan is reviving ice hockey in the country and joined the IIHF in September 2019. The capital of Tashkent had a team at the same level during Soviet times.
In Asia’s Far East, Chinese KHL team Kunlun Red Star had the highest attendance with 3247 fans coming to the arenas in Beijing and Shenzhen (and two home games on Russian ice due to the coronavirus crisis). Other clubs reaching four digits were Japanese teams Nikko Ice Bucks (1383), Oji Eagles Tomakomai (1140) and the Tohoku Free Blades (1007) from the Asia League.
The Chicago Blackhawks were the club with the highest average attendance worldwide (21,441) before the Montreal Canadiens (21,085) and the Dallas Stars (20,326), the only three teams to reach the 20,000 mark. The average attendance in the National Hockey League prior to the interruption was 17,423 fans, a slight growth compared to last year around this time. The American Hockey League had an average of 5532 fans, second in North America and seventh worldwide.
The top-11 European countries in term of attendance in the top league all saw the numbers increase and Switzerland’s National League, again the league with the highest attendance, broke the 7000 mark in average attendance as the first ice hockey league in Europe. This was one of the results in the International Ice Hockey Federation’s annual European attendance study.
Scroll down to see the rankings including Europe’s top-100 clubs.
Note: games in closed arenas due to the coronavirus situation – as it happened for clubs in Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland – were not taken into the attendance average calculation.
In Switzerland the average attendance grew by 1.8 per cent to 7074 fans with the same twelve teams as last season. The Lausanne Hockey Club was the biggest growth contributor as it opened its new arena, which is also a venue for the 2020 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, and with the higher capacity increased its average to 8548 fans. Lausanne had the third-highest average in Switzerland and moved from 27th to 13th place in Europe.
The German DEL moved to second place in Europe with a 5-per-cent increase and 6523 fans in average. 11 out of 14 teams had increasing numbers, the most Kolner Haie, which took first place with 13,333 fans in average for first place in the country.
The Russian-based cross-border Kontinental Hockey League dropped to third place despite an increase of 1.4 per cent to 6486 spectators in average.
Behind the top-3 the ranking remained mostly the same with the Swedish Hockey League (6056 fans, +3.9%), the Czech Extraliga (5724, +6%), the Finnish Liiga (4246, +0.1%), the Austria-based cross-border league EBEL (3163, +6.5%) and the Elite Ice Hockey League in the United Kingdom (3043, 6.8%), which also saw its numbers go up significantly in the season after Great Britain’s successful stay in the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. In the Czech Republic Jaromir Jagr and his hometown team Rytiri Kladno were seen as a major contributor for growing attendances around the country.
The biggest increase was seen in Slovakia in the season after hosting the 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. The average attendance went up by 43.1 per cent to 2,379 fans. This was mostly thanks to the re-integration of Slovan Bratislava (5241), which returned in the domestic league after its KHL adventure, but also most other clubs had higher numbers, most notably HC Kosice (5221), which was happy to welcome its old rival from the capital. With Dukla Michalovce, a team promoted to the league reached third place with 3448 fans also contributing to the increase.
The top-10 ends with the French Ligue Magnus, which saw its numbers go up by 13.1% to 1940 fans. The Angers Ducs had the biggest growth thanks to their new arena and topped the charts with 3425 fans in average.
Denmark had its numbers go up after hosting the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship for the first time in 2018 and this season they increased again by 7 per cent to 1,632 in average and a move up to 11th place.
The best-visited European club remains – since 2002 – SC Bern from Switzerland. In average 16,237 spectators came to the arena in the Swiss capital – the highest average attendance outside of the NHL.
SKA St. Petersburg remains in second place with 13,594 fans. The Russian giant was the KHL team with the best attendance also thanks to its outdoor game that starts to become a tradition.
Germany’s Kolner Haie moved up to third place with 13,333 fans at the expense of Eisbaren Berlin with 12,901 while another German team, Adler Mannheim with 11,891 fans, completes the top-5.
Belarusian KHL team Dynamo Minsk (10,666), Frolunda Gothenburg from Sweden (10,579) and for the first time Czech club Sparta Prague (10,333) also hit five digits. The ZSC Lions Zurich (9349) and Spartak Moscow (8913) complete the top-10 in Europe.
Europe’s top-100 also include seven teams that play in a second-tier league in their countries led by Czech team HC Ceske Budejovice, which reached 44th place with 5843 fans.
The top-100 teams come from twelve different countries including 20 from Russia, 15 each from Germany and Sweden, 14 from the Czech Republic, 13 from Switzerland, 11 from Finland, three each from Austria and the United Kingdom, two each from Kazakhstan and Slovakia, and one each from Belarus and Latvia.
One new entry missed the top-100 by just one spot. Humo Tashkent from Uzbekistan, which joined the second-tier Russian league VHL, was 101st with 3,680 fans in average and also had a farm team in the Kazakh championship. Uzbekistan is reviving ice hockey in the country and joined the IIHF in September 2019. The capital of Tashkent had a team at the same level during Soviet times.
In Asia’s Far East, Chinese KHL team Kunlun Red Star had the highest attendance with 3247 fans coming to the arenas in Beijing and Shenzhen (and two home games on Russian ice due to the coronavirus crisis). Other clubs reaching four digits were Japanese teams Nikko Ice Bucks (1383), Oji Eagles Tomakomai (1140) and the Tohoku Free Blades (1007) from the Asia League.
The Chicago Blackhawks were the club with the highest average attendance worldwide (21,441) before the Montreal Canadiens (21,085) and the Dallas Stars (20,326), the only three teams to reach the 20,000 mark. The average attendance in the National Hockey League prior to the interruption was 17,423 fans, a slight growth compared to last year around this time. The American Hockey League had an average of 5532 fans, second in North America and seventh worldwide.
Attendance Rankings
| Attendance figures in European hockey leagues 2019/2020 | ||
| Rank | Club | Attendance |
| 1. (1.) | SC Bern (SUI) | 16,237 |
| 2. (2.) | SKA St. Petersburg (RUS) | 13,594 |
| 3. (4.) | Kolner Haie (GER) | 13,333 |
| 4. (3.) | Eisbaren Berlin (GER) | 12,901 |
| 5. (5.) | Adler Mannheim (GER) | 11,891 |
| 6. (8.) | Dynamo Minsk (BLR) | 10,666 |
| 7. (6.) | Frolunda Gothenburg (SWE) | 10,579 |
| 8. (9.) | Sparta Prague (CZE) | 10,330 |
| 9. (7.) | ZSC Lions Zurich (SUI) | 9,349 |
| 10. (13.) | Spartak Moscow (RUS) | 8,913 |
| 11. (10.) | Jokerit Helsinki (FIN) | 8,845 |
| 12. (11.) | Dusseldorfer EG (GER) | 8,642 |
| 13. (27.) | Lausanne HC (SUI) | 8,548 |
| 14. (12.) | CSKA Moscow (RUS) | 8,092 |
| 15. (17.) | Dynamo Pardubice (CZE) | 7,852 |
| 16. (18.) | Farjestad Karlstad (SWE) | 7,546 |
| 17. (15.) | Kometa Brno (CZE) | 7,428 |
| 18. (20.) | HIFK Helsinki (FIN) | 7,227 |
| 19. (19.) | Ak Bars Kazan (RUS) | 7,189 |
| 20. (16.) | Djurgarden Stockholm (SWE) | 6,930 |
| 21. (23.) | EV Zug (SUI) | 6,848 |
| 22. (31.) | Bili Tygri Liberec (CZE) | 6,829 |
| 23. (14.) | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (RUS) | 6,823 |
| 24. (29.) | Barys Nur-Sultan (KAZ) | 6,816 |
| 25. (22.) | Metallurg Magnitogorsk (RUS) | 6,776 |
| 26. (39.) | Sibir Novosibirsk (RUS) | 6,630 |
| 27. (32.) | Salavat Yulayev Ufa (RUS) | 6,615 |
| 28. (35.) | Sheffield Steelers (GBR) | 6,610 |
| 29. (26.) | HV71 Jonkoping (SWE) | 6,553 |
| 30. (21.) | Traktor Chelyabinsk (RUS) | 6,437 |
| 31. (24.) | Malmo Redhawks (SWE) | 6,387 |
| 32. (40.) | Dynamo Moscow (RUS) | 6,386 |
| 33. (45.) | HK Sochi (RUS) | 6,374 |
| 34. (33.) | Linkopings HC (SWE) | 6,306 |
| 35. (34.) | Fribourg-Gotteron (SUI) | 6,183 |
| 36. (46.) | Skoda Plzen (CZE) | 6,134 |
| 37. (54.) | Brynas Gavle (SWE) | 6,104 |
| 38. (38.) | Geneve-Servette (SUI) | 6,042 |
| 39. (67.) | Leksands IF (SWE) | 6,027 |
| 40. (60.) | HC Litvinov (CZE) | 5,946 |
| 41. (37.) | EHC Biel (SUI) | 5,933 |
| 42. (30.) | HC Lugano (SUI) | 5,916 |
| 43. (25.) | Dinamo Riga (LAT) | 5,865 |
| 44. (44.) | HC Ceske Budejovice (CZE2) | 5,843 |
| 45. (43.) | SCL Tigers Langnau (SUI) | 5,780 |
| 46. (59.) | Ilves Tampere (FIN) | 5,637 |
| 47. (48.) | Augsburger Panther (GER) | 5,586 |
| 48. (51.) | Lulea HF (SWE) | 5,538 |
| 49. (42.) | Nottingham Panthers (GBR) | 5,504 |
| 50. (55.) | Tappara Tampere (FIN) | 5,429 |
| 51. (52.) | Torpedo Nizhni Novgorod (RUS) | 5,382 |
| 52. (36.) | Amur Khabarovsk (RUS) | 5,352 |
| 53. (56.) | Orebro HK (SWE) | 5,333 |
| 54. (50.) | Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg (RUS) | 5,297 |
| 55. (41.) | Vitkovice Ostrava (CZE) | 5,291 |
| 56. (28.) | Slovan Bratislava (SVK) | 5,241 |
| 57. (93.) | HC Kosice (SVK) | 5,221 |
| 58. (47.) | HC Ambri-Piotta (SUI) | 5,204 |
| 59. (53.) | Karpat Oulu (FIN) | 5,160 |
| 60. (57.) | Nuremberg Ice Tigers (GER) | 5,104 |
| 61. (62.) | EHC Red Bull Munich (GER) | 5,036 |
| 62. (71.) | Vienna Capitals (AUT) | 4,939 |
| 63. (75.) | HC Zlin (CZE) | 4,885 |
| 64. (74.) | Rogle Angelholm (SWE) | 4,848 |
| 65. (66.) | Vaxjo Lakers (SWE) | 4,835 |
| 66. (61.) | Lowen Frankfurt (GER2) | 4,829 |
| 67. (73.) | EHC Kloten (SUI2) | 4,809 |
| 68. (58.) | Mountfield Hradec Kralove (CZE) | 4,793 |
| 69. (83.) | Straubing Tigers (GER) | 4,785 |
| 70. (92.) | Bjorkloven Umea (SWE2) | 4,754 |
| 71. (70.) | Skelleftea AIK (SWE) | 4,697 |
| 72. (69.) | Ocelari Trinec (CZE) | 4,676 |
| 73. (63.) | Krefeld Pinguine (GER) | 4,669 |
| 74. (77.) | HC Davos (SUI) | 4,629 |
| 75. (68.) | Black Wings Linz (AUT) | 4,625 |
| 76. (64.) | Avangard Omsk (RUS) | 4,563 |
| 77. (81.) | Lada Togliatti (RUS2) | 4,509 |
| 78. (72.) | Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven (GER) | 4,484 |
| 79. (49.) | TPS Turku (FIN) | 4,391 |
| 80. (79.) | Belfast Giants (GBR) | 4,387 |
| 81. (80.) | Assat Pori (FIN) | 4,362 |
| 82. (78.) | HC Olomouc (CZE) | 4,303 |
| 83. (90.) | Vityaz Podolsk (RUS) | 4,246 |
| 84. (86.) | SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers (SUI) | 4,218 |
| 85. (152.) | Rytiri Kladno (CZE) | 4,193 |
| 86. (101.) | Severstal Cherepovets (RUS) | 4,145 |
| 87. (76.) | Iserlohn Roosters (GER) | 4,131 |
| 88. (95.) | Energie Karlovy Vary (CZE) | 4,095 |
| 89. (91.) | ERC Ingolstadt (GER) | 4,039 |
| 90. (82.) | Admiral Vladivostok (RUS) | 3,956 |
| 91. (111.) | KooKoo Kouvola (FIN) | 3,943 |
| 92. (96.) | HPK Hameenlinna (FIN) | 3,930 |
| 93. (100.) | Stavanger Oilers (NOR) | 3,884 |
| 94. (106.) | KAC Klagenfurt (AUT) | 3,868 |
| 95. (105.) | Schwenninger Wild Wings (GER) | 3,839 |
| 96. (87.) | Yuzhny Ural Orsk (RUS2) | 3,823 |
| 97. (141.) | Dresdner Eislowen (GER2) | 3,811 |
| 98. (107.) | MODO Ornskoldsvik (SWE2) | 3,774 |
| 99. (99.) | JYP Jyvaskyla (FIN) | 3,760 |
| 100. (102.) | Sary-Arka Karaganda (KAZ) | 3,755 |
| Regular-Season average league attendance Europe & Asia | ||
| 1 | Switzerland - National League | 7,074 |
| 2 | Germany - Deutsche Eishockey Liga | 6,523 |
| 3 | Russia - Kontinental Hockey League | 6,486 |
| 4 | Sweden - Swedish Hockey League | 6,056 |
| 5 | Czech Republic - Extraliga | 5,724 |
| 6 | Finland - Liiga | 4,236 |
| 7 | Austria - EBEL | 3,163 |
| 8 | Great Britain - Elite Ice Hockey League | 3,043 |
| 9 | Slovakia - Extraliga | 2,379 |
| 10 | France - Ligue Magnus | 1,940 |
| 11 | Denmark - Metal Ligaen | 1,632 |
| 12 | Norway - Get-ligaen | 1,626 |
| 13 | Asia League (JPN/KOR/RUS) | 919 |
| 14 | Poland - Polska Hokej Liga | 872 |
| 15 | Belarus - Extraliga | 833 |
| 16 | Alps Hockey League | 650 |
| 17 | Erste Liga (HUN/ROU) | 632 |
| 18 | Championship of Kazakhstan | 598 |
| 19 | BeNe Liga (NED/BEL) | 576 |
| 20 | Ukraine | 506 |
| 2nd-tier leagues of European top countries | ||
| 1 | Germany - DEL2 | 2,855 |
| 2 | Sweden - HockeyAllsvenskan | 2,606 |
| 3 | Switzerland - Swiss League | 1,799 |
| 4 | Russia - VHL | 1,568 |
| 5 | Czech Republic - Chance Liga | 1,428 |
| 6 | Finland - Mestis | 764 |
| Regular-Season average attendance North America | ||
| 1 | National Hockey League | 17,423 |
| 2 | American Hockey League | 5,543 |
| 3 | ECHL | 4,280 |
| 4 | Western Hockey League | 4,119 |
| 5 | Ontario Hockey League | 3,900 |
| 6 | Quebec Major Junior Hockey League | 3,179 |
| 7 | NCAA Men's Division I | 3,178 |
| 8 | Southern Professional Hockey League | 3,136 |
| 9 | United States Hockey League | 2,288 |