After a long, dark, and cold winter break, it’s finally time for Allsvenskan and Superettan to kick off again. The 2023 season resulted in a range of attendance records, and there are strong indications that the positive trend in attendance will continue this year as well.

Allsvenskan celebrates its 100th anniversary, and the jubilee season begins tomorrow, Saturday, when IFK Norrköping welcomes reigning champions Malmö FF. The opening weekend also includes already sold-out matches such as Hammarby vs. Kalmar FF and IFK Göteborg vs. Djurgården, as well as the encounter between AIK and Västerås SK, where nearly 35,000 people have already secured a ticket. Tomorrow also marks the start of the Superettan. First up is the meeting between GIF Sundsvall and Östersunds FK, closely followed by the Gothenburg derby Örgryte IS vs. Utsiktens BK.

“The season opener is eagerly awaited, and for us football enthusiasts, it’s probably the biggest sign of spring. The sales of season tickets and match tickets have already reached new levels, and we hope the opening weekend sets the tone for yet another season of packed stadiums,” says Ola Rydén, league manager at Swedish Professional Football Leagues.

Last season, matches in Allsvenskan and Superettan attracted over three million visitors. Moreover, for the first time since the introduction of a series with 16 teams, Allsvenskan achieved an average attendance per match of over 10,000 visitors. Superettan also had a successful year with a total of 624,395 arena visits and an average of 2,602 visitors per match.

During the opening weekend of 2023 alone, 141,000 visitors were attracted to the arenas, an increase of 30,000 visitors compared to the previous year. Ticket sales for 2024 suggest that this year’s opening weekend may well surpass last year’s strong start in attendance.

“The clubs are doing a great job in terms of attracting audiences, which is clearly reflected in ticket sales. At the same time, the significant interest in both leagues continues to grow, which leads us to believe in new attendance records already this year,” Rydén continues.

Similar to last year, the clubs will be rewarded for their audience engagement efforts throughout the season through Unibet’s initiative, Publikstödet (Audience Support). The purpose of Publikstödet is to support the most important aspect of Swedish football, namely the audience’s engagement. A total of 20 million SEK will be distributed among the clubs to reward their audience engagement efforts. No club will receive less than 200,000 SEK in distribution.

Opening Round Matches:
Allsvenskan:
Saturday, March 30
IFK Norrköping – Malmö FF, 15:00

Sunday, March 31
Hammarby – Kalmar FF, 14:00
GAIS – IF Brommapojkarna, 14:00
BK Häcken – Mjällby AIF, 16:30

Monday, April 1
IFK Göteborg – Djurgården, 14:00
IK Sirius – Halmstads BK, 14:00
AIK – Västerås SK, 16:30
IF Elfsborg – IFK Värnamo, 16:30

Superettan:
Saturday, March 30
GIF Sundsvall – Östersunds FK, 13:00
Örgryte IS – Utsiktens BK, 15:00

Sunday, March 31
Landskrona BoIS – Sandvikens IF, 15:00
Trelleborgs FF – IK Oddevold, 15:00

Monday, April 1
Örebro SK – Skövde AIK, 13:00
Gefle IF – Helsingborg, 13:00
IK Brage – Varbergs BoIS, 15:00
Östers IF – Degerfors IF, 19:00