How Nebraska volleyball’s fan record could be broken in Indiana
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WISH) — Last Wednesday night was be a night for volleyball fans to remember.
A record 92,003 fans showed up to the University of Nebraska’s volleyball game against Omaha. The match was played at the Cornhuskers’ football stadium, Memorial Stadium.
The 92,003 fans broke a world record for most fans at a women’s sporting event. The previous record was 91,648 fans for a 2022 soccer match between Barcelona and Wolfsburg.
“It just means so much to anybody that has been involved in our sport,” Purdue University volleyball head coach Dave Shondell said. “And not only did they draw 92,003 fans for a volleyball match, Nebraska ran such a first-class operation up there.”
Shondell was asked about the world record during his press conference on Monday.
“It was amazing for our sport,” Shondell said. “To break the world record for attendance in women’s athletics, obviously in the world, is a pretty big deal.”
Of course, volleyball arenas do not hold as many people as football stadiums. That begs the question: If Purdue or any other program in Indiana were to attempt to break the fan record, where would the match have to be played?
“The only place I think we can go to beat that would be to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway,” Shondell said. “Try to get a match down there … the only place you could break that record that I can think of because we can’t break the record here.”
The Purdue volleyball program plays its matches at Holloway Gymnasium, which has a capacity of 2,288, according to Purdue Athletics’ website.
Meanwhile, Purdue’s football stadium, the largest athletics venue on campus, has a capacity of 61,441.
Of course, IMS is home to the largest single-day sporting event in the world, the Indianapolis 500. Around 300,000 people were expected to attend this year’s running of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Shondell even pitched a possible opponent for this potential record-breaking match one day.
“Maybe play the Butler Bulldogs down at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and try to get 250,000 (people), and break that record would be kind of fun,” Shondell said with a smile.
So, volleyball fans, what do you think? Would you be down to break the world record?
It sure would be neat to watch a volleyball match take place on “The Yard of Bricks.”