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On Saturday afternoon, a crowd of 47,111 took in the Seattle Sounders 1-0 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps at CenturyLink Field.

A couple of hours later and a couple of miles down the road from the CLink, the eighth-ranked University of Washington Huskies drew under 60,000 fans for their home game against Portland State. While that game was ending, the Seattle Mariners drew in excess of 30,000 to Safeco for their night game against the Astros.

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In Vancouver, meanwhile, the UBC Thunderbirds drew 7,834 for their homecoming game against the University of Regina.

This was considered a good crowd for the defending national champs. Yes, it was.

Now, before we go any farther, we acknowledge the Seattle-area market — which includes Tacoma, Bellevue, Kent and Everett — draws on a population of some 3.7 million, which is significantly larger than greater Vancouver’s 2.5 million.

We’ll also concede there is a massive cultural difference between the U.S., and Canada, which is why there are high schools in Texas which outdraw some CFL teams.