Charlton Athletic's average attendance at The Valley compared to last season, it is worse | OneFootball

FLW takes a look at the recent attendance figures at The Valley.

Charlton Athletic have been underwhelming in League One during the last few seasons, and their performances seem to have had an impact on the attendance figures at The Valley.

Following a disappointing 16th-place finish in the third tier last season, the Addicks currently find themselves 13th in the table during the November international break, with their results having dropped off after an encouraging start to the 2024/25 campaign under Nathan Jones.

Charlton supporters would have been hoping to see their team at least reach the play-offs for the first time since they were relegated from the Championship in 2020, although there is now a lot of work to be done if they are going to be among the promotion contenders at the end of the season.

The Addicks have one of the most impressive stadiums in League One, with The Valley capable of housing 27,111 supporters, but it has been a long time since it was filled on a regular basis.

Let's take a look at how the average attendance in SE7 so far this season compares to the previous campaign, as per data from Transfermarkt.com.

What is the average attendance at The Valley?

There was a fairly optimistic mood among Charlton supporters at the beginning of last season, with Dean Holden set to embark on his first full season in the dugout at The Valley.

However, following a disappointing start to the 2023/24 campaign, Holden became the first EFL manager to lose his job, and the Addicks never really produced the form that was needed to turn their season around.

An average of 13,481 supporters were in attendance at The Valley for League One fixtures over the course of the campaign, which is less than half of the capacity of the ground.

Charlton made a far better start to their 2024/25 League One campaign, with three straight victories to start this season, although they have since slipped down into the bottom half of the table.

The average attendance at The Valley so far is 12,453, more than 1,000 fewer than it was over the duration of last season.

It should also be noted that more than 24,500 supporters watched Charlton's 2-2 draw with Wrexham in October, so the current average attendance is higher than it would be if there had not been Hollywood-owned opposition to attract a larger crowd than usual at one of the games.

The average attendance at The Valley should increase if Charlton return to the Championship

After the current campaign, Charlton will have spent eight of the previous nine seasons in League One, and they have only had an average attendance of more than 13,500 once in the third tier during that time, when they averaged a turnout of 15,592 across the 2021/22 season.

The Addicks have spent five seasons in the Championship since they won the League One title in 2012, and the average attendance only dropped below 15,500 during the COVID-affected 2019/20 campaign, suggesting that many fans want to see second tier football before they are willing to make a return.

Nathan Jones will have his work cut out if he is going to guide Charlton back to the Championship this season, but history suggests that if he does manage to do so, the average attendance will progress along with the team.