Power Ranking: Most Feared Stadiums in College Soccer

While it's not always about attendance, it's a fact that strong home support generally leads to intimidation of the visiting team. In recent college soccer history, there are three college fan bases that consistently turn up to show their passion and excitement. Let's dive into who these are.

Check out the below image of NCAA statistics showing the nation's average attendance leaders each year since 1998. (Although we're focusing only on the women's game, I've included the men's attendance stats in the image just out of interest and to inspire the question - what is going on at UCSB?!) North Carolina dominated in the late 1990's and into the early 2000's. Texas A&M moved ahead in 2003 and 2004 before the University of Portland stole the show in 2005 to current day (note: the 2012 stats are not yet released).

Source: NCAA

University of Portland
The Pilots' fan base has led NCAA attendance records for the last seven consecutive years, beginning with the undefeated 2005 national championship winning season. UP average attendance peaked with 3,771 fans in 2007 - that nets out to 77% stadium capacity. That stat causes eyeballs to pop when compared to the total university student population - just 3,810 (in 2012). The Harry A. Merlo Field is a soccer-specific natural glass surface with a seating capacity of 4,892. Field lights were added in 2004 allowing attendance to soar for Friday night matches. Check out the video below which shows UP's own perspective on Merlo Field, which boasts an all-time record of 206-23-9 (21 seasons) going into the 2012 season. And if you want a deeper understanding of the potential "why" behind the attendance swell at UP, read this article in Pitch Invasion by Andrew Guest "Where Women's Soccer is King".

Texas A&M

The Aggies carved out a fan base within it's student population of almost 50,000 to top out at a high of 2,790 in 2004 - that's 80% stadium capacity. Ellis Field, a soccer-specific natural grass venue with lighting, holds 3,500 fans and has enjoyed a home winning percentage of .867 (177-25-5, 19 seasons) going into 2012. The video below gives a sense of the Aggies soccer home field experience.

University of North Carolina

UNC's Fetzer Field, in its ninth decade (yes that's not a typo, it's been there for almost a century) of use as a multi-sport facility, owns the record for the highest annual average attendance all-time of 3,983 set in 2001. That's 70% capacity (seats 5,700). In its program history, the team has amassed one of the best home records in college sports. Ahead of the 2012 season, the team sat at an all-time record of 308-17-8 (32 seasons). UNC's fan base pulls from a student population of 29,000.

Source: UNC.

In closing, another program who is clipping the heels of Portland's attendance run is BYU. According to the NCAA, BYU's South Field was second to Portland in 2011 for average attendance at 2,882 (136% of official stadium capacity of 2,140) and was #1 in total attendance with 31,697 across 11 games. Check out the image below for the top five leaders in 2011. Then scroll further to watch a video on the BYU fan experience.

Source: NCAA.

Source: NCAA, University of Portland, University of North Carolina, Texas A&M, BYU.