Volleyball fans in Nebraska have outdone themselves again.
The Nebraska Athletics Department announced Thursday that all 82,900 tickets offered for Volleyball Day in Nebraska have been claimed. That announcement came just over 48 hours after initial tickets were put on sale.
We dared to dream big.
Husker Nation brought it to life. pic.twitter.com/gMM6uD8zkT
— Husker Volleyball (@Huskervball) April 27, 2023
“Nebraska fans never cease to amaze me,” Nebraska Vice Chancellor, Director of Athletics Trev Alberts said. “We knew the interest in this match would be extremely high, but to sell out Memorial Stadium is truly remarkable. I’ve heard lots of talk about breaking the NCAA volleyball attendance record, but given the incredible demand for this event we want to explore every avenue to see if it’s possible to challenge the record for the most attended women’s sporting event in this country. We are truly grateful!”
The record crowd for any NCAA volleyball match is 18,755 when Nebraska played Wisconsin on Dec. 18, 2021, in the NCAA Championship at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The largest NCAA volleyball regular-season crowd is 16,833 when Wisconsin hosted Florida at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis., on Sept. 16, 2022.
“There is No Place Like Nebraska. What more can you say?” Nebraska Head Coach John Cook said. “We knew there was a lot of interest in this event based on the reaction we’ve had the last couple of months traveling around the state and the country. But to sell out more than 80,000 tickets already? It’s unreal. Our team was already pumped up about Volleyball Day in Nebraska, but now I can’t even imagine how excited they are going to be for this. It’s epic.”
The record for a women’s sporting even in the United States is 90,185, set at the Rose Bowl in 1999 when USA and China met in the Women’s World Cup Final. The world record was set last year at 91,553 as Barcelona and Real Madrid met for a UEFA Women’s Champions League match.
Nebraska will play Omaha on Aug. 30. Before that regular-season match, Nebraska-Kearney and Wayne State will meet for an exhibition. The concert performer for after the matches has yet to be announced.