The world record for highest attendance at a women's sporting event was set Wednesday night when more than 92,000 fans gathered to watch the University of Nebraska volleyball match against Omaha.
On what was dubbed "Volleyball Day in Nebraska," the school's chancellor canceled all in-person classes for the day and urged students to attend the event at the football team's Memorial Stadium. The five-time NCAA champion Cornhuskers swept the match 3-0.
Memorial Stadium's official capacity for football games is just over 85,000, but organizers were able to welcome more fans because there were seats and standing room on the field. The massive crowd broke the previous women's sports attendance record, which was set last year when 91,648 fans gathered in Barcelona, Spain, for a Champions league soccer match between FC Barcelona and Wolfsburg.
Chris Machian/Omaha World-Herald via AP
The event began with an exhibition volleyball match between Division II Nebraska-Kearney and Wayne State and ended with a concert by country music artist Scotty McCreery.
The Huskers are an NCAA volleyball powerhouse and have led the nation in attendance every season since 2013. They're one of the only Division I women's sports programs to consistently turn a profit.
"It's incredible. I don't have enough words to describe it," Nebraska's Andi Jackson said. "We were walking out of the tunnel after the second set, and we heard on the speaker we had just broken the world record. Everyone was trying to stay locked in, but we were also so excited. I can't describe how grateful I am to be a part of it."
