Attendances were up by over 50% on the first-ever Unite Round, with a cumulative match attendance of more than 71,000 spectators.
33 goals were scored across the 12 games at Allianz Stadium and Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, in what was an entertaining round of domestic football.
Other activities were organised for the celebration of football, including a huge grassroots Unite Cup tournament, Girls Unite clinics, buzzing fan zones and a multicultural march.
Speaking in relation to Unite Round 2024/25, Nick Garcia, A-Leagues Commissioner, stated: “It was a turbulent build up with a ticketing outage, a change in venue for our six Ninja A-League Women matches and a planned train strike – but we’re really proud to have welcomed 50% more fans from across Australia and New Zealand to Sydney compared to our first-ever Unite Round.
“We worked with fans, clubs and our event partners to evolve and elevate the fan experience, and across the weekend, Kogarah and Moore Park were a buzz with grassroots activities and fans celebrating the world game.
“We had more than 600 fans, representing 40 countries, take part in our multicultural march on Friday night to honour the cultural diversity of our game. While current stars from the Ninja A-League Women led the next generation of stars in our Girls Unite Gala Days, and almost 100 grassroots teams battled it out across Moore Park to be crowned the first Unite Cup champions.
“We really believe in the long term potential of this partnership with the NSW Government and Destination NSW, establishing a new tradition and welcoming football fans from across Australia and New Zealand to electrify this incredible city. This event really resonates with our young and diverse fanbase, and aligns with our drive to unite communities through a shared love of football. It’s the pinnacle weekend of professional football, and we hope this is a tradition that we can continue to build on and grow in the coming years.”
Past and present A-League players also participated in fan zone activities alongside supporters, with players also acknowledged at the match-day function as a part of the league’s ongoing celebrations of its 20th season.
The A-Leagues have had a great start to the season according to Garcia, noting increases in key metrics in the opening rounds overall.
“It’s been a really strong start to our 20th season,” he said.
“Crowds have grown by 30% year-on-year across the first four rounds of the Isuzu UTE A-League Men, while the new Saturday night doubleheader on 10 Bold has also increased the free-to-air national audience by 34%. We look forward to continuing this momentum across both leagues as we move into the summer period.”
