Rugby League Biggest Crowds

There have been some truly massive crowds turn up to watch Rugby League. Every year in Australia and Great Britain the big games get upwards of 80,000 attending on a regular basis.

On this section of the site you will find the biggest recorded crowds for certain Rugby League nations.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In Australia
The 1999 National Rugby League Grand Final between the Melbourne Storm and St George/Illawarra Dragons was played before 107,558 at the Sydney Olympic Stadium. The crowd figure set the official world record for a Rugby League match.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In Great Britain
The 1954 Challenge Cup replay between Halifax and Warrington drew a then world record crowd of 102,575 to Odsal Stadium in Bradford. It remains the biggest attendance at a “Rugby” match of any kind in the Northern Hemisphere. Many at the game however believe the attendance figure was well over 120,000.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In New Zealand
On October 9th 1988 47,363 attended the World Cup Final in (Venue). Australia beat New Zealand by a score line of 25-12.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In France
In 1954 37,471 attended a 13 all draw between France and Great Britain during the first Rugby League World Cup. The game played in Toulouse set the record that has not been broken more than 50 years later.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In Russia
In 2002 Russia hosted Moscow’s first rugby league international. The match was shown in full on national television, and was the first league international to be played on artificial turf in front of American football posts. Their opponents, the USA Tomahawks, were outclassed 54-10, in front of a crowd of 25,000.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In Spain
On May 19th 2019 the Catalan Dragons took on the Wigan Warriors at Camp Nou in Barcelona. On that day the Dragons beat Wigan 33-16 in front of a crowd of 31,555. At the time this was also a record regular season crowd for a Super League match.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowds In The United States
On the 3rd of March in 2024 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, 40,746 people attended the NRL season opening double header featuring the Manly Sea Eagles vs South Sydney Rabbitohs, and the Brisbane Broncos vs the Sydney Roosters.

On the 24th of June 2018 at Mile High Stadium in Denver, Colorado, 19,320 fans turned up to see the England defeat the New Zealand Kiwis 36-18.

In 1987 at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Long Beach, California, 12,349 fans turned up to see a 4th State Of Origin game played between NSW and Queeland.

In 2008 the South Sydney Rabbitohs played the Leeds Rhinos in an exhibition game at Hodges Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. The attendance figures for this game were reported to be between 12,000 and 12,500 spectators.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In Ireland
On November 9th Ireland hosted Australia during the 2013 Rugby League World Cup. A crowd of 5,021 turned up at Limerick to watch Australia win by a scoreline of 50-0.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In Canada
On October 10th in 2019 the Toronto Wolfpack hosted the Featherstone Rovers in the Championship Grand Final. The Wolfpack won the match 24-6 at Lamport Stadium in front of 9,974 spectators.

The Biggest Rugby League Crowd In Papua New Guinea
On September 8th 2010 the Papua New Guinea Grand Final saw the Goroka Lahanis defeated the Mendi Muruks 21-10 in front of a crowd that was said to be 20,000+.