KUALA LUMPUR: Perspolis’ Round of 16 clash with Bunyodkor smashed the ACL attendance record with over 95,000 spectators going through the Azadi Stadium turnstiles to watch the Iranian giants' shock 1-0 loss to the Uzbeks.
AFC
The total number of fans who witnessed Piroozi’s elimination courtesy of a
contentious penalty from former World Player of the Year Rivaldo was registered
at 95,225, eclipsing the previous record of 59,034 set in the second leg of the
2007 AFC Champions League final when Urawa Reds downed Iranian outfit Sepahan
2-0 at the Saitama Stadium to seal a 3-1 aggregate triumph.
“Piroozi
(Persepolis) since their establishment in 1963 have been driven by fans,”
explains www.the-afc.com ’s Farsi Editor
Shahin Rahmani.
“A very large percentage of Iranian football fans
identify themselves with either Piroozi or Esteghlal, both Tehran-based
clubs.
“Unofficial estimates put Piroozi’s fan base at around 25 million
but it may be more.
“It is not surprising that these matches were packed
houses. In fact, fans start queuing up to enter the stadium hours before some
key matches, or sleep around the stadium a night before as they did for the
Piroozi-Bunyodkar match,” said Rahmani.
Around 55,000 fans attended their
2009 ACL Group B meeting with Sharjah – which was ultimately cancelled following
the withdrawal of the UAE club – and 53,204 showed up to cheer the nine-time
Iranian champions to a 3-1 victory over Qatar’s Al Gharafa.
Another match
reeling in over 55,000 fans was between Pakhtakor and Piroozi at the Pakhtakor
Stadium in Tashkent in 2003.
The 2007 quarter-final second leg between
Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal and UAE side Al Wahda was watched by over 53,000 fans.
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