Chinese Super League smashes all-time attendance record as 2026 figures revealed

The Chinese Super League (CSL) may have faded from the Western spotlight in recent years, but the division has been growing domestically, and set a new attendance record of 7.096 million fans in the 2026 season.

European supporters are likely to remember the CSL for its drive to secure high-profile stars in the mid-2010s – most notably Shanghai SIPG (now known as Shanghai Port) signing attacking midfielder Oscar from Chelsea for £60m in 2017 – with the role of financial disruptor having since been usurped by the Saudi Pro League in the 2020s.

After those initial plans to grow the game in China failed to produce significant results, major investments have been made into bolstering youth football and the popularity of the sport in a more organic manner.

While the CSL has some way to go before it reaches the level of its European counterparts, this season's numbers make for positive reading.

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The impressive growth shown in the Chinese football and the CSL extends far beyond the headline number of 7.1 million supporters across the season, with the average attendance at matches in China's top flight reaching 29,567 – an increase of 14.8% over last term.

The division also set a new record for attendance in a single round of fixtures, with more than 307,000 fans watching the action unfold on matchday eight.

Likewise, the second-largest crowd in the history of the CSL was counted at Workers' Stadium on March 21, when 64,118 spectators saw Beijing Guoan draw 1-1 with Shanghai Shenhua.

Bolstering these numbers further is the fact that the three professional leagues in China saw a combined 9.8 million attendees, with China League One attracting 2.194 million fans (a 15.69% year-on-year increase), and China League Two welcoming 535,000 through its stadiums' gates.

Chinese fans also showed out for women's football in the country, with the highest-ever attendance for a domestic women's league game (24,193) recorded in the Women's Super League opener, not to mention the overall figure of 298,500 supporters that caught games in person throughout 14 round of fixtures – an increase of 64.8% from last term.

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The Saudi Pro League has seen its own increase in attendance in recent years, owing to the influx of foreign stars to the division, but it remains to be seen whether that plan will be a sustainable one.

The CSL went through its own phase of attempting to force growth by attracting stars through financial incentives, but their investment in younger, domestic players has led to these new record figures.

For instance, 580 players across the country's three professional men's leagues were aged 21 or under, a 34.4% proportion of all domestic players. In the CSL specifically, there was a 12.7% increase in the registration of under-21s, accompanied by a 42.9% rise in playing time for those younger stars.

Speaking on the impact of young players, Yang Xi, vice chairman of the Chinese Professional Football League, said:

“Young players are accelerating their development through the professional leagues, and a group of outstanding talents have emerged to join national teams at various levels, continuously strengthening the talent pipeline.”