By Zachary Baru
The Springfield Thunderbirds once again capped another successful season on the ice with success off the ice as well. The American Hockey League franchise finished the 2025-26 regular season with an average home attendance of 6,258 fans per game.
The Thunderbirds' average was good enough for 13th out of 32 clubs in the AHL, as averaging over 6,000 is no longer sufficient to be top ten in a league that has seen significant market growth within the last decade.
In today's AHL, with major markets such as Chicago, San Diego, Cleveland and Charlotte, large attendances are no longer a rarity. Attendances of 5,000-plus, which prior to 2015 might be seen as decent numbers, have now become the norm. All formerly mentioned clubs finished within the top ten in attendance, with the lowest average being Charlotte at 7,257 fans per game. Go back a decade, and Charlotte's 8th spot was occupied by Texas at 6,290, showing growth in the league, despite setbacks during the pandemic.
Going back to the Thunderbirds, this season's average of 6,258 marks a slight drop from last year's average of 6,369 fans per game. During last year's 2024-25 season, the T-Birds marked an astonishing seven straight years of growth in average home attendance, increasing every single season since their inception in 2016. It should be noted that the Thunderbirds did not play during the pandemic in 2020-21. Even during a COVID-19 interrupted season of 2021-22, Springfield was able to increase their attendance from the 2019-20 season.
With a slight dip in attendance this year, the Thunderbirds still should be celebrated for finishing their season with over 6,000 fans per game for the fourth consecutive season. This is an accomplishment that is a stark contrast to that of attendances during much of the 2000's and early 2010's. Additionally, this is a major accomplishment for the Thunderbirds' marketing department, which has won several league awards in both this and previous seasons. Incoming marketing manager Shae Koharski was recognized at the AHL League Awards last season with winning the league's Marketing Department of the Year and the league's Most Unique Social Media Content.
While the Thunderbirds continue their postseason success on the ice, off the ice things once again seem to be headed in a positive trajectory. Thanks to strong support from the region's fans, and a marketing department that continues successful campaigns year after year, the Thunderbirds are once again reminding the growing league that the "small market" of Western Mass. can produce much more than small market numbers.
Source: HockeyDB.com, American Hockey League, MassLive
Zach Baru can be followed on Twitter @zbaru and reached at zachbaru@gmail.com. Zach also writes SportsBusinessBoston.com and SportsBizAmerica.com.
