by Mike Woitalla @MikeWoitalla, Oct 26, 2010

[MLS ATTENDANCE] Average attendance for the 2010 regular season, with Seattle on top for the second straight season, was the highest since 2007 and the third highest in league history.



League newcomer Philadelphia had the fourth highest average with 19,254. Among the 15 returning teams, all but six had an increase from 2009.



Those whose attendance dropped included Toronto FC, which after a fourth straight season of missing the playoffs saw only a 0.5 percent decrease.



The San Jose Earthquakes had a lower average than in 2009, but drew 9,659 in its Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara with a capacity of 10,500. Last season, the Quakes played two games at the Oakland Coliseum against the Los Angeles Galaxy (drawing 15,862 and 17,128) and one at San Francisco’s Candlestick Park that was a doubleheader with Chivas Guadalajara-Barcelona that drew 61,572.



Also deceiving is the drop in attendance for FC Dallas, which last season included in its average a crowd of 51,012 when it played a doubleheader at the Cotton Bowl with headliner Mexico-Colombia. In fact, for the first time in years, MLS clubs did not combine doubeheaders with international clubs or national teams in 2010.



Still, FC Dallas’ 2010 average of 10,815 in its soccer-specific Pizza Hut Park is discouraging, especially considering the team’s strong season, which included an MLS record-tying 19-game unbeaten streak.



D.C. United, which finished last in the Eastern Conference, saw a 13 percent drop in attendance after a 19 percent decline in 2009 from its 2008 figure.



Besides Philadelphia’s strong showing and the big bump by Seattle, the New York Red Bulls boosted the league jump by drawing nearly 50 percent more at their new stadium in Harrison, N.J., than they did in 2009 at the Meadowlands.

MLS ATTENDANCE:

Club (2010 Rank)

2010 Home

Average (Final) 2009 Home

Average (Final)

2010/2009

plus/minus Seattle (1) 36,173 30,897

+5,276 (+17%) Los Angeles (2) 21,437 20,416 +1,021 (+5%)

Toronto FC (3) 20,453 20,344 -109 (-0.5%)

Philadelphia (4) 19,254

--

--

New York (5) 18,441 12,490 +5.951 (+47%)

Houston (6)

17,310

17,047 +263 (+1%) Real Salt Lake (7) 17,095 16,375 +720 (+4%)

Chicago (8)

15,814

14,688 +1,126 (+8%)

Columbus (9)

14,642

14,446 +196 (+1%)

Chivas USA (10)

14,576

15,091 -515 (-3%)

D.C. United (11)

14,532

16,088 -1,556 (-13%)

Colorado (12)

13,329

12,330 +999 (+8%)

New England (13)

12,987

13,731 -744 (-5%)

FC Dallas (14)

10,815

12,440 -1,625 (-13%)

Kansas City (15)

10,287

10,053 +234 (+2%)

San Jose (16) 9,659

14,114 -4,455 (-32%)

Leaguewide

16,675

16,037 +638 (+4%)



35,953 20,672 18,379





Since joining the league in 2009, the Seattle Sounders have led the league in attendance, ending the Los Angeles Galaxy's five-season run at the top.



TOP MLS ATTENDANCE AVERAGES

2010 Seattle: 36,173

2009 Seattle: 30,897

1996 Los Angeles: 28,916

2008 Los Angeles: 26,009

2007 Los Angeles: 24,252

2005 Los Angeles: 24,204

1996 MetroStars: 23,898

2004 Los Angeles: 23,809

2003: Los Angeles: 21,983

1998 Los Angeles: 21,784

2001: D.C. United 21,518

1997 New England: 21,423

2006 Los Angeles: 20,814

2002: Colorado: 20,687

2000 Los Angeles: 20,400

1999 Columbus: 17,696

The leaguewide attendance average in 2010 was the highest since 2007 and the third-highest in league history.

MLS YEAR-BY-YEAR ATTENDANCE AVERAGE

1996 - 17,406

1997 - 14,603

1998 - 14,312

1999 - 14,282

2000 - 13,756

2001 - 14,961

2002 - 15,821

2003 - 14,898

2004 - 15,559

2005 - 15,108

2006 - 15,504

2007 - 16,770

2008 - 16,460

2009 - 16,037

2010 - 16,675