SEATTLE - For the first time in the history of the oldest national team tournament in the world, the group stage of Copa América 2024 has sold more than 1 million tickets, according to CONMEBOL officials.
If CONMEBOL figures are true, we should expect Copa América 2024 to surpass the attendance reached during Copa América Centenario in 2016, when nearly 1.5 million fans attended games with an average of 46,370 spectators per match.
Ruben Olavarrieta, commercial manager of Copa América 2024 told EFE about the data they have collected less than two weeks into the tournament. "After the calculations that included the games on July 1, we have seen 1 million spectators so far," Olavarrieta said. "This makes us really happy because we still have 10 games left to play and to reach the one million mark during the group stages is very gratifying," he added.
Out of the teams with the best support at Copa América 2024, Argentina leads the pack. 'La Albiceleste' sold out each of its three group stage matches. The rest of the teams have combined to sell out six games.
The match with the highest number of spectators was the Copa América Centenario final rematch between Argentina and Chile at MetLife Stadium, drawing a crowd of 81,106 fans during Argentina's 1-0 win.
The size of the venues selected to host games this summer has played a huge role on making the 2024 edition the only one to surpass the one million mark during the group stages. Eleven out of the 14 venues chosen to host Copa América 2024 games have a capacity of at least 60,000.
But despite the record numbers in attendance, a lot of games have seen great chunks of empty seats due to the price of tickets and other gameday-related costs. The average price of a Copa América ticket, according to multiple estimates, has been over $200.
According to a report by The Athletic, the Ecuador and Jamaica game at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas only drew a crowd of about 24,000 people. Even the United States failed to sell out its tournament opener at AT&T Stadium, drawing a crowd of 48,000 fans in the 80,000-seat venue.
Although there has only been nine sell outs so far in the tournament, U.S. Soccer is expected to make a good profit for hosting the 48th edition of Copa América. According to the 2024 Book of Reports, U.S. Soccer is expected to receive $10 million, plus a 5% "sanctioning fee" on ticket sales. Sources expect that percentage to amount between an extra $10-$15 million.
In 2016, U.S. Soccer cleared around $75 million from hosting the 2016 edition, based on multiple federation sources.
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