Barcelona's Irene Paredes: Camp Nou sellout will inspire other clubs

Barcelona defender Irene Paredes hopes selling out Camp Nou will serve as inspiration for other clubs ahead of Saturday's Champions League final against Lyon.

Barca twice broke the attendance record in women's football on their way to this weekend's showpiece in Turin, with 91,553 fans watching their quarterfinal win over Real Madrid and 91,648 then present for the semifinal against Wolfsburg.

«It was amazing, we couldn't believe it,» Paredes said. «Everyone was like: 'Wow.' We were wondering if all the people would come to the stadium that day and of course they did.

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»Inside we didn't realise that much, but when I came off in 75th minute and sat on the bench, I was like: 'Wow, this is huge.'

«The second time, vs. Wolfsburg, was also a surprise because it was another new record. People could say it's lucky, they gave a lot of tickets [away], but no, most people paid for the tickets. They came to cheer us on because they want to support us.

»The club are doing things really well, amazingly, and I hope the rest of the world is looking to us to try and do the same."

Barca's success on the pitch has fuelled the interest in the team, which translated into ticket sales for those two games.

After winning the Treble last season, including a first-ever Champions League trophy, they remain on track for a Quadruple this year after clinching the Spanish Supercopa and completing a perfect league season, winning all 30 matches.

However, they have never beaten Lyon, who had won five Champions Leagues in a row before Barca won the competition last year, which is