Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Aidan Smith

SPFL enjoys one of its busiest opening weekends ever

The SPFL has welcomed the second highest opening weekend league attendances in its history - as over 130,000 fans turned out to watch games across the country.

An impressive 133,586 supporters attended matches across the cinch Premiership, cinch Championship, cinch League 1 and cinch League 2 to mark the start of the 2023/24 League campaign.

It was the highest opening day attendances in five seasons, when 134,397 attended matches at the start of season 2018/19 – the only opening weekend league crowds to top this season since the SPFL was formed in June 2013.

The largest crowd of the opening weekend was at Celtic Park on Saturday, where 58,772 fans witnessed the champions defeat Ross County 4-2.

A total of 17,586 supporters watched St Mirren’s dramatic late 3-2 victory over Hibernian at Easter Road on Sunday, while 9,256 fans were inside The BBSP Stadium, Rugby Park, as Kilmarnock defeated Rangers 1-0 the previous day.

SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster said: “It’s great to see such strong attendances at games across the country.

“I know the opening weekend of league fixtures is one of the highlights of the league season for supporters, and I’d like to thank everyone that attended an SPFL game throughout our four divisions.

“This weekend’s strong crowds continue to build on last season’s positive trends, which included five million fans attending SPFL matches for the first time ever, and Scotland enjoying the highest per capita support across European football.

“It’s a further reminder of why Scottish football fans are renowned across the world for their incredible support.”

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.