Cowboys set regular season attendance record

The Dallas Cowboys home opener on Sunday night against the New York Giants drew 105,121 fans which is the largest regular season crowd in National Football League history. The game marked the first regular season game played at the brand new $1.15 billion Cowboys Stadium. (NFL.com Game Center: NYG 33, DAL 31)

Previously, the largest crowd for a regular season game occurred on Oct. 2, 2005 when the San Francisco 49ers played the Arizona Cardinals at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. That game drew 103,467 fans who witnessed the first-ever regular season game played outside the United States.

Prior to the game in Mexico, the largest crowd for a regular season game came on November 10, 1957 as the 2-4 Los Angeles Rams took on the rival 49ers who were riding a five-game win streak into the contest. The showdown attracted 102,368 fans who watched the Rams avenge a loss earlier in the season to San Francisco. Newspaper accounts of the game reported that an estimated 10,000 more fans were turned away at the gate that day.

Hall of Fame quarterback Norm Van Brocklin led the attack as the Rams won 37-24. He connected on 14 of 23 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns to end Bob Boyd including a crucial 50-yard TD strike the second quarter. Boyd led all receivers with 5 catches for 117 yards and a pair of touchdown catches. L.A. also had three rushing TDs. The Rams’ defense flustered the 49ers’ Y.A. Tittle all day long and dropped him for sacks that totaled losses of 72 yards.

The Rams-49ers was a huge draw at the gate during the ’50s in Los Angeles. Four times during the decade the teams attracted crowds of more than 90,000 fans.

Largest NFL Crowds

Date	Stadium	Game	Teams	Attendance
Aug. 15, 1994	Azteca Stadium	American Bowl (Mexico City)	Cowboys vs. Oilers	112,376
Aug. 17, 1998	Azteca Stadium	American Bowl (Mexico City)	Cowboys vs. Patriots	106,424
Aug. 22, 1947	Soldier Field	College All-Star	Bears vs. All-Stars	105,840
Sept. 20, 2009	Cowboys Stadium	Regular Season	Cowboys vs. Giants	105,121
Aug. 4, 1997	Estadio Guillermo Canedo	American Bowl (Mexico City)	Broncos vs. Dolphins	104,629
Jan. 20, 1980	Rose Bowl	Super Bowl XIV	Steelers vs. Rams	103,985
Jan. 30, 1983	Rose Bowl	Super Bowl XVII	Redskins vs. Dolphins	103,667
Oct. 2, 2005	Azteca Stadium	Regular Season	49ers at Cardinals	103,467
Jan. 9, 1977	Rose Bowl	Super Bowl XI	Raiders vs. Vikings	103,438
Nov. 10, 1957	L.A. Coliseum	Regular Season	49ers at Rams	102,368