Tampere Derby Draws Under 8,000 as SM-liiga Trails European Rivals

Fewer than 8,000 fans watched the decisive Tampere derby at Nokia Arena, despite the venue's 12,700 capacity. Tamperelainen reports that SM-liiga clubs across Finland posted weak attendance in the 2025–26 season, with playoff crowds falling well below those in Sweden, Switzerland and Germany.

Earlier playoff matches in Tampere drew only 8,282 and 9,333 spectators. None of the games were sold out. The report cites weekday scheduling and higher prices from dynamic ticketing as partial explanations. By contrast, Kölner Haie regularly fill an 18,600-seat arena even on weeknights, and similar turnouts are common across the SHL and NL. The report ranks major European top-division clubs by 2025–26 attendance and refers readers to sports media Vuohi for the full list.

The attendance decline follows Ilves' recent financial report, which blamed weaker ticket sales and rising costs for a €1.19m loss Ilves' financial report. Ilves also announced season-ticket sales and changes to arena seating earlier this summer, including expanded wheelchair spaces at Nokia Arena the club's June announcement on season tickets and arena seating.