Record Crowd Greets Kerr’s Gotham Return in New York
Sam Kerr made her second debut for Gotham FC in front of the largest crowd ever recorded for a women’s sporting event in New York City, as 42,715 fans filled Citi Field to see Gotham beat Washington Spirit 1-0.
The official attendance at the usually baseball-only home of the New York Mets was announced as a sell-out, smashing Gotham’s previous best of 15,560 from a 2024 match. Rose Lavelle, the USA international midfielder, scored the only goal in the first half before Kerr entered as a second-half substitute.
Kerr previously played for the club between 2015 and 2017, when it was known as Sky Blue FC. She later spent time at Chelsea, where she scored 116 goals and won 12 trophies before returning to Gotham.
“In many ways this is like a full circle moment with Sam Kerr coming here and being able to experience this on her first night,” NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said.
The turnout came despite a thick layer of smoke hanging over the stadium from recent wildfires in Ontario, Canada. Berman pointed to the figure as evidence of demand built through investment. “We know that with investment, if you build it, they will come. And this is a proof point for that,” she said.
Gotham recently announced a move from Sports Illustrated Stadium in New Jersey to Etihad Park in Queens, a ground shared with MLS side New York City FC. The change was described as designed to make the club accessible to more fans.
“My favourite thing about tonight is that it isn’t transactional. It’s not a one and done. This is the beginning of a new relationship for this team in Queens,” Berman said.
The NWSL single-game attendance record still belongs to the 63,000 who watched Denver Summit face Washington Spirit at Empower Field last March. The smoke over Citi Field is expected to clear before Sunday’s World Cup final between Spain and Argentina at New York New Jersey Stadium, where temperatures are also forecast to drop.