Orient help Football League enjoy a new high in attendance figures

5:24pm Thursday 15th May 2008

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COCA-COLA League One enjoyed its highest attendance figures for 36 years with an average of nearly 8,000 supporters, while Orient boasted a season average of just over 5,000 per game.

Almost four and a half million people attended matches in the division during last season, which represented a 6.7% jump on last year.

The O's welcomed 119,830 supporters to Brisbane Road during the league campaign, which is an average of 5,210 per game.

The club's highest attendance of the year was 7,602 in the league match against Leeds United on April 5, while Orient's lowest attendance was 3,082 back in March.

The Coca-Cola football league broke the 16 million barrier for the fourth successive year, and crowd numbers have more than doubled in 20 years, proving that lower league football's profile is increasing all the time.

Incredibly, the Championship is Europe's fourth most watched league, behind only the Premier League, Germany's Bundesliga and Spain's La Liga, ousting both France and Italy's top leagues.

Football League chairman Lord Mawhinney said the new figures reflected the "passion and loyalty" of fans.

"These are another set of impressive figures," said Mawhinney. "I would like to offer my appreciation to everybody that has gone to watch league football this season. Our competitions thrive on the passion and loyalty that fans give to their clubs.

"I would also like to congratulate league clubs on the efforts they have made to fill their grounds. On the pitch, they have provided another season of exciting, competitive football. Off the pitch, innovative community programmes have enabled clubs to engage better with people living locally."