Arsenal and Tottenham at Wembley, and Manchester United at Maine Road – Top 30 record home attendances in English football history

It has been a long time since we saw fans in English football stadiums.

Seeing empty grounds with games being played in them can be a hard watch as we wait for them to re-open as the world goes through the coronavirus pandemic.

Manchester United’s Old Trafford, and other stadia across the country are empty despite football being played

Since the beginnings of the beautiful game, fans have flocked to arenas large and small across the country to watch their favourite team.

Before all-seater stadiums became mandatory in the Premier League due to the Taylor Report in 1990, it was not uncommon to see even the smallest teams attract full support.

And no doubt when football returns to normality, supporters will be clamouring to get back into the stadia which they love so much and we could see huge figures at games, perhaps more than we have seen in recent times.

But which clubs have, in the past, boasted record numbers in attendance? Here, talkSPORT looks at the numbers from Fratton Park to Old Trafford and Wembley.

 

30. Nottingham Forest

49,946 attendance at the City Ground (v Manchester United) – First Division (October 28, 1967)

The City Ground is an iconic stadium on the River Trent and remains one of the biggest in England

29. Stoke City

51,380 attendance at the Victoria Ground (v Arsenal) – First Division (March 29, 1937)

28. Portsmouth

51,385 attendance at Fratton Park (v Derby County) – FA Cup sixth round (February 26, 1949)

Fratton Park is steeped in history and while it has seen better days there are plans for it to be refurbished

27. Coventry City

51,455 attendance at Highfield Road (v Wolverhampton Wanderers) – Second Division (April 29, 1967)

26. Crystal Palace

51,482 attendance at Selhurst Park (v Burnley) – Second Division (May 11, 1979)

Selhurst Park is always well attended but once upon a time seeing north of 50,000 people in attendance wasn’t uncommonGetty Images - Getty

25. Middlesbrough

53,802 attendance at Ayresome Park (v Newcastle United) – First Division (December 29, 1949)

24. Burnley

54,775 attendance at Turf Moor (v Huddersfield) – FA Cup third round (February 23, 1924)

23. Hull City

55,019 attendance at Boothferry Park (v Manchester United) – FA Cup sixth round (February 26, 1949)

22. Leeds United

57,892 attendance at Elland Road (v Sunderland) – FA Cup fifth round replay (March 15, 1967)

The 1960s and 70s were a golden era for Leeds and fans will hope Marcelo Bielsa can get them back to those heady highsGetty Images - Getty

21. Cardiff City

57,893 attendance at Ninian Park (v Arsenal) – First Division (April 22, 1953)

Ninian Park was demolished in 2009 and housing estate built on top a year later

20. West Ham United

59,988 attendance at the London Stadium (v Everton) – Premier League (March 30, 2019)

The Hammers hosted the Toffees in the game which broke their attendance recordGetty Images - Getty

19. Wolves

61,315 attendance at Molineux (v Liverpool) – FA Cup fifth round (February 11, 1939)

18. Liverpool

61,905 attendance at Anfield (v Wolverhampton Wanderers) – FA Cup fourth round (February 2, 1952)

The Reds’ famous Anfield has never been the biggest stadium in the country due to its location, but it’s certainly one of the noisiestGETTY

17. Blackburn Rovers

62,522 attendance at Ewood Park (v Bolton Wanderers) – FA Cup sixth round (March 2, 1929)

16. West Brom

64,815 attendance at the Hawthorns (v Arsenal) – FA Cup sixth round (March 6, 1937)

Come sun or snow, fans have always flocked to the Hawthorns

15. Birmingham City

66,844 attendance at St Andrew’s (v Everton) – FA Cup fifth round (March 11, 1939)

Fans packed into St Andrew’s in the 1930s

14. Huddersfield Town

67,037 attendance at Leeds Road (v Arsenal) – FA Cup sixth round (February 27, 1932)

13. Sheffield United

68,287 attendance at Bramall Lane (v Leeds United) – FA Cup fifth round (February 15, 1936)

12. Newcastle United

68,386 attendance at St James’ Park (v Chelsea) – First Division (September 3, 1930)

The Newcastle Journal celebrates the Magpies’ win in front of a record crowd

11. Bolton Wanderers

69,912 attendance at Burnden Park (v Manchester City) – FA Cup fifth round (February 18, 1933)

10. Sheffield Wednesday

72,841 attendance at Hillsborough (v Manchester City) – FA Cup fifth round (February 17, 1934)

9. Arsenal

73,707 attendance at Wembley (v RC Lens) – Champions League group stage (November 25, 1998)

8. Charlton Athletic

75,031 attendance at The Valley (v Aston Villa) – FA Cup fifth round (February 12, 1938)

The Addicks’ stadium now only holds 27,111 supporters

7. Sunderland

75,118 attendance at Roker Park (v Derby County) – FA Cup sixth round replay (March 8, 1933)

6. Aston Villa

76,588 attendance at Villa Park (v Derby County) – FA Cup sixth round first leg (March 2, 1946)

5. Everton

78,299 attendance at Goodison Park (v Liverpool) – First Division (September 18, 1948)

The Toffees are set to leave their historic stadium in 2023 when they move to their under construction area on the Bramley-Moore Doc

4. Chelsea

82,905 attendance at Stamford Bridge (v Arsenal) – First Division (October 12, 1935)

If you couldn’t stand in the stadium, just sit on the advertising boards

3. Manchester United

83,260 attendance at Maine Road (v Arsenal) – First Division (January 17, 1948)

Maine Road was used by United after World War Two and gave the club their record attendance

2. Manchester City

84,569 attendance at Maine Road (v Stoke City) – FA Cup sixth round (March 3, 1934)

1. Tottenham Hotspur

85,512 attendance at Wembley (v Bayer Leverkusen) – Champions League group stage (November 2, 2016)

Spurs played their Champions League games at Wembley in 2016 and packed plenty of supporters inGetty Images - Getty