Hyundai A-League to break one million fan mark

The Hyundai A-League's spectacular start to the season will continue on Friday night when the one millionth fan for 2013/14 will come through the gates in record time.

The Hyundai A-League's spectacular start to the season will continue on Friday night when the one millionth fan for 2013/14 will come through the gates of either AAMI Park or nib Stadium.

The 2013/14 season will set a new record for the shortest amount of time taken to get 1,000,000 fans through the turnstiles.

Following last night-s Melbourne Victory v Western Sydney clash, the current aggregate attendance for the 2013/14 season sits at 991,097 with the magical figure set to fall at AAMI Park if the Melbourne Heart v Newcastle Jets match attracts a crowd of 8903. If not, the figure will tumble later in the night when Perth Glory hosts Brisbane Roar at nib Stadium.

Football Federation Australia CEO, David Gallop, said that it was a fantastic achievement for football in Australia and New Zealand.

“To reach the 1,000,000th fan for the 2013/14 season in round 15 is another indication of the strength of the Hyundai A-League,” Gallop said. “This growth comes off the back of a record-breaking 2012/13 season for the Hyundai A-League and shows that football is finding a place in the Australian sporting landscape.

“The mainstream Australian public continues to embrace the competition all around Australia and New Zealand with increases in attendance and membership in all of the five key states, NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia as well as Wellington in New Zealand.

“The Hyundai A-League continues to grow with every key performance indicator up on last year, which in itself was a record season for the competition. Average TV audience is up 31%, average attendance has grown by 8% and there has been a 35% increase in club memberships.

“Football is enjoying a growth trajectory unrivalled in Australian sport and the Hyundai A-League-s continued success comes at a time we are planning to take on the world-s best football nations at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, Brisbane Roar goalkeeper Nadine Angerer has won FIFA-s Ballon d-Or as the best female player in the world and Australian men, women and children prepare to register to play football in record numbers.”