Best Attended UK Clubs : 1981 - 2022 (1st & 2nd Wigan & Leeds)

The series "Best Attended UK Clubs : 1981 - 2022" looks at which clubs have the highest attendances but also the evolution that has occurred over the period. A club must have been in the top flight for at least half of the seasons and featured in each decade to be considered. We start with the top two clubs, the Wigan Warriors from Lancashire and Yorkshire's Leeds Rhinos. Please note 2020 and 21 are missing due to covid restrictions.

1) Wigan Warriors. Average 12,600.

The club dominated UK RL prior to the Super League era and had the best crowds as a result. They have still enjoyed much success since but the crowds haven't swelled. The increase from pre-SL to that period is just 3.5%, much lower than the average. The recent dip from 2018 and continuing is not a good sign.

2) Leeds Rhinos. Average 12,264.

Back in the pre-SL era, crowds weren't that good but grew by an impressive 51.1% since SL was introduced. A recent dip may be due to extensive ground renovations that have been undertaken. Either that or the SL effect isn't as strong as it was.

In the chart, Wigan missed the first season due to being in a lower division. That doesn't affect the average as only years that the team was in the top flight competition count. The green column is annual averages and the blue column is the average over each decade. Covid didn't allow the years 2020 and 2021 to be included.

Others in the series can bee seen by clicking on the following rankings:

3rd & 4th, 5th & 6th, 7th & 8th, 9th & 10th, 11th & 12th, Summary.