There is no optimism about the men’s soccer team.
Now attendance figures in Sweden and Slovenia risk turning into a record low.
If it did, it would be boring, says Jan Anderson.
Already ready for the European Championship, Sweden drew just 19,737 spectators when it hosted the blueberry nation in the Faroe Islands and sent out a B team in November 2019.
It’s the worst attendance figure for a competitive international by the guys on Friends (except for the pandemic, of course).
But that number is now in danger of being beaten next Tuesday when Sweden host Slovenia in their Nations League final, also the men’s 50th international match on the national stage since it opened ten years ago.
– We sold between 16,500 and 17,000 tickets, says Christopher Lund, the Swedish Football Association’s ticket manager, on Monday afternoon.
satisfied with 20,000
Kick-off time, 9pm on a Tuesday, is of course not in favor of ticket sales.
– Hopefully we can go to 20,000. If we get up to 20,000 in a match like this, we’ll be satisfied, says Lund.
The opposition and Sweden’s poor results in the Nations League in June may not be attractive either.
Nothing against Slovenia, but there are more attractive opponents for Swedish fans to come and watch. If it was about winning the group, it would probably be a little easier.
“I want people to come and watch”
Ask Sportbladet Jan Anderson How does he see that there can be a record low audience when the Nations League is decided?
– Nothing I can influence. But if it does, it’s boring. We want people to come and see us. In general, we have good fans here at home. I can understand after the June results that it doesn’t attract much and that the Nations League is still a tournament that people don’t really understand, frankly, compared to a World Cup qualifying tournament or the European Championship, says Yan.
Worst attendance figures of all time, including training matches? 9876 against Slovakia in October 2018. Four other friendlies have gathered under 20,000 spectators. In total, the men played 49 international matches on the national stage.
