Ice hockey-PWHL sees record attendance growth in third regular season

April 28 : The Professional Women's Hockey League experienced record growth in its third regular season, surpassing one million single-season attendees for the first time, the league said on Tuesday.

The PWHL, which comprises four teams each in the U.S. and Canada, attracted 1,116,497 fans in attendance across 120 regular-season games. Average attendance rose 28 per cent from the entire 2024-25 season to 9,304 per game. It also marked a 71 per cent increase from the league's inaugural season in 2023-24.

Average attendance across all primary home venues grew by 35 per cent over the season.

On April 4, the PWHL set a U.S. attendance record for women's ice hockey when a sold-out crowd of 18,006 fans watched the New York Sirens host the Seattle Torrent at Madison Square Garden.

The PWHL began with six teams: the Sirens, Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost, Toronto Sceptres, Montreal Victoire and Ottawa Charge. Two expansion franchises, the Vancouver Goldeneyes and Torrent, began play this season.

The Sirens, Frost and Torrent play home games at arenas that are also home to NHL teams.