The men’s college lacrosse semifinal game between Princeton and Duke drew a disappointing crowd on the campus at Virginia. They were moved out of Gillette Stadium due to a scheduling conflict.
It did not help that the two schools do not have a large alumni base.
All things considered, the college lacrosse crowd actually could’ve been a lot worse. That doesn’t mean the lack of attendance on a rainy, slightly chilly day Charlottesville was not a letdown year over year.
Why did the NCAA move its college lacrosse championship?
The final four and national championship game has not been played on a college campus since 2002 at Rutgers. The final weekend of the men’s college lacrosse season has been held at a neutral site venue for the last 24 years. That includes Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Rentschler Stadium in East Hartford, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough and M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. They rotate.
To be completely honest, I do not know how the host site is selected or why. They typically do two years at one venue before they move to the next.
Last year’s semifinals and championship game took place at Gillette Stadium. That would’ve been the case again this year if not for the World Cup. FIFA selected the home of the New England Patriots as one of its host sites in 2023. Seven matches will be played in Foxborough: five group-stage games featuring Haiti, Scotland, Norway, Morrocco, England, Ghana and France, one Round of 32 fixture and the first quarterfinal.
Although those matches do not get underway until July 9, FIFA reins king and will control the use of the stadium over the next six-ish weeks. Nothing will be played on the new sod during that period of time.
As a result, the NCAA was forced to pivot. The University of Virginia was selected as the host of the men’s college lacrosse championships for 2026. The school will split ticket revenue from the tournament with the NCAA, split concession sales with the stadium vendor, and make all of the money from parking.
The crowd was good, not great.
Gillette Stadium announced a total attendance of 31,524 for the semifinals in 2025. It set the record in 2007 at 52,004.
A similar crowd was expected for the 2026. And then the venue changed.
Virginia was prepared to welcome more than 30,000 fans to its stadium for the semifinals on Saturday. As far as I can tell, that number was not quite met for the first game between Duke and Princeton.
Here is a look at the crowd right after warmups:
The crowd did not fill in for the opening face-off.
This was about halfway through the first quarter:
Mind you, the near side was more full than the far side. Here is a better look:
Scott Stadium at the University of Virginia holds a maximum capacity of 61,500. Based on what I saw from photos (and the television broadcast), it did not appear to be half full during the game between Duke and Princeton. Close, maybe, but not quite. I would guess about 40%.
Call it 25,000?
That is not a terrible number. Especially considering that the two teams playing in the first game enroll less than 30,000 students combined. Still, it was not anywhere close to the record from 2007. The forced venue change did not help to fill the seats.