The following is a list of professional wrestling attendance records in Europe. Unlike other parts of the world, almost all of the records set during the period contemporary to the "Pioneer-era" (1900s–1940s) in American wrestling still remain. A number of these events are also among the highest attended pro wrestling shows of all-time. According to this list, these include the stadium shows in Athens, Greece, especially those headlined by Jim Londos, held at the Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium and Panathenaic Stadium from the late 1920s to early 1970s. Rafvela vs. Felix Lamban, promoted by Luis Bamala, was held at the Estadio Metropolitano on August 24, 1957, then the largest football stadium in Spain, drawing a crowd of over 35,000. All but fourteen of the events have been held in Greece, while six have been held in Bulgaria, four in Spain, two in Ireland, and one each in Denmark and Italy.
In the 21st century, Europe is dominated by the American professional wrestling promotion World Wrestling Entertainment which has controlled the industry in North America since 2002, although traditional styles of professional wrestling have survived in France and Germany/Austria, as well as the United Kingdom. As the World Wrestling Federation, it became the first national promotion in the U.S. during the 1980s wrestling boom. Its first-ever show in mainland Europe took place on October 23, 1987, at the sold-out Bercy de Paris in Paris, France. The main event was a match between Harley Race and Junkyard Dog featuring André the Giant as special guest referee. The event was attended by 12,000 people and televised on Canal+. In the modern-era, the highest attended shows are from WWE's weekly television programs WWE Raw and WWE SmackDown, with the June 18, 2005 episode of WWE SmackDown in Dublin, Ireland being the company's most attended wrestling event in Europe. Only two of the attendances listed are non-WWE events, with the European Wrestling FederationThe Italian promotion of the 2000s, not the French promotion of 1988–1993 which provided matches filmed in France for TF1/Eurosport's television show New Catch and Nu-Wrestling Evolution being the only European-based promotions on the list.
Events and attendances Promotion Event Location Venue AttendanceMain Event(s)Ref. Jim Londos vs. Karl Zybszko Athens, Greece Panathenaic Stadium 65,000 Jim Londos vs. Karl Zybszko Jim Londos vs. Kola Kwariani Athens, Greece Panathenaic Stadium 60,000+ Jim Londos vs. Kola Kwariani for the World Heavyweight Championship with special referee George Tragos Jim Londos vs. Johannes van der Walt Athens, Greece Panathenaic Stadium 50,000+ Jim Londos vs. Johannes van der Walt Jim Londos vs. Dinarli Mehmed Athens, Greece Panathenaic Stadium 50,000+ Jim Londos vs. Dinarli Mehmed Jim Londos vs. Kola Kwariani Athens, Greece Panathenaic Stadium 50,000 Jim Londos vs. Kola Kwariani for the World Heavyweight Championship Gino Garibaldi vs. Colonel Kobolo Trieste, Italy 50,000 Gino Garibaldi vs. Colonel Kobolo Jim Londos vs. Karol Zbyszko Athens, Greece Panathenaic Stadium 40,000+ Jim Londos vs. Karol Zbyszko Jim Londos vs. Jim Wright Athens, Greece Panathenaic Stadium 40,000 Jim Londos vs. Jim Wright Rafvela vs. Felix Lamban Madrid, Spain Estadio Metropolitano 35,000+ Rafvela vs. Felix Lamban in a 10-minute Challenge match for 20,000 pesetas Dan Koloff vs. Peter Ferestanoff Sofia, Bulgaria Yunak Stadium 30,000 Dan Koloff vs. Peter Ferestanoff Dan Koloff vs. Regis Siki Sofia, Bulgaria Yunak Stadium 25,000+ Dan Koloff vs. Regis Siki Dan Koloff vs. Al Pereira Sofia, Bulgaria Yunak Stadium 25,000+ Dan Koloff vs. Al Pereira Stan Karolyi vs. Jose Tarres Valencia, Spain Plaza de Toros de Valencia 25,000 Stan Karolyi (c) vs. Jose Tarres for the World Mid-Heavyweight Championship Jose Tarres vs. Georges Freymond Valencia, Spain Plaza de Toros de Valencia 23,000 Jose Tarres (c) vs. Georges Freymond for the European Middleweight Championship Victorio Ochoa vs. Jose Tarres Valencia, Spain Plaza de Toros de Valencia 22,000 Victorio Ochoa (c) vs. Jose Tarres for the Spanish Middleweight Championship WWE SmackDown Dublin, Ireland Convention Centre Dublin 22,000 John Cena (c) vs. John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Kurt Angle in a three-way elimination match for the WWE Championship with special guest referee Steve Austin Magnus Bech-Olsen vs. Jess Pedersen Charlottenlund, Denmark Charlottenlund Racetrack 20,000 Magnus Bech-Olsen vs. Jess Pedersen Dan Koloff vs. Charlie Santen Sofia, Bulgaria Yunak Stadium 20,000 Dan Koloff vs. Charlie Santen Dan Koloff vs. Regis Siki Sofia, Bulgaria AS-23 Stadium 20,000 Dan Koloff vs. Regis Siki Dan Koloff vs. Frank Bronowicz Sofia, Bulgaria Yunak Stadium 20,000 Dan Koloff vs. Frank Bronowicz Danno O'Mahoney vs. Rube Wright Dublin, Ireland Dalymount Park 20,000 Danno O'Mahoney vs. Rube Wright International Catch Show Athens, Greece Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium 20,000 Andreas Lambrakis vs. The Masked Wrestler; Per the pre-match stipulation, if Lambrakis won his opponent would be forced to unmask World Catch Festival Athens, Greece Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium 20,000 Atilio vs. Theodoros Megaritis Kevin Ramsten vs. Theodoros Megaritis Athens, Greece Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium 20,000 Kevin Ramsten (c) vs. Theodoros Megaritis for the European Heavyweight Championship Theodoros Megaritis vs. Di Bestia & Yousouf Osman Athens, Greece Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium 20,000 Theodoros Megaritis vs. Di Bestia and Yousouf Osman in a handicap match
Historical +Top 10 most-attended shows prior to 1890s No. Promoter Event Location Venue AttendanceMain Event(s)Ref. 1. Blas vs. Creste Marseille, France Hippodrome du Chateau des Fleurs 3,000This may have been part of a series of matches between the two men at the venue which, according to newspaper accounts, "have enthralled 3,000 spectators for five weeks". The previous four shows may have also drawn 3,000 people, however, the September 16, 1855 match is the only known that is documented. “Pitiless” Blas vs. “The Bull of Provence” Creste 2. Pujol vs. Creste Marseille, France Hippodrome du Chateau des Fleurs 2,000+The exact attendance figure is unknown, however, the event is described as having "thousands of spectators in attendance". "The Colossus of Gironde" Pujol vs. “The Bull of Provence” Creste 3. Belt of Nantes Nantes, FranceManege FoucaultUnknownThe exact attendance figure is unknown, however, both events are described as having a "large crowd". Belt of Nantes tournament Vincent vs. Creste "The Iron Man" Vincent vs. "The Bull of Provence" Creste in a Revenge match 4. Pujol vs. Marseille Sr. Marseille, FranceCirque CourtinUnknownThe exact attendance figure is unknown, however, both events are described as having a "large audience in attendance". "The Colossus of Gironde" Pujol vs. "The Tireless Miller of La Palud" Marseille Sr. Pujol vs. Marseille Sr. Pujol (c-Bordeaux) vs. Marseille Sr. (c-Lyon) in a Champion vs. Champion match for the Belt of Bordeaux and Belt of Lyon 5. Saint-Étienne, FranceSalle de la Rotonde Saint-CharlesUnknownThe exact attendance figure is unknown, however, the October 26, 1857 show is described as being "an immense success in terms of attendance". According to newspaper accounts, the December 1, 1862 show was "a complete monetary success". Etienne vs. Vincent "The Shepherd" Etienne vs. "The Iron Man" Vincent 6. Etienne vs. Pujol Marseille, FranceHippodrome du Chateau des FleursUnknownThe exact attendance figure is unknown, however, the events are described as having "many fans in attendance". According to newspaper accounts, the August 22, 1858 show had "a flood of spectators". "The Shepherd" Etienne vs. "The Colossus of Gironde" Pujol Etienne vs. Creste "The Shepherd" Etienne vs. "The Bull of Provence" Creste 7. Etienne vs. Arpin Chalon-sur-Saône, FranceSalle du ColiseeUnknownThe exact attendance figure is unknown, however, both events are described as being filled to capacity. According to newspaper accounts, the January 2, 1860 show "could barely contain the crowd". "The Shepherd" Etienne vs. "The Terrible Savoyard" Arpin 100FF Open Challenge Open challenge match to an amateur wrestler vs. a pro wrestler from the Rossignol-Rollin troupe for 100 francs 8. Bordeaux, France Salle de la rue Saint-Martin UnknownThe exact attendance figure is unknown, however, the event is described as having a "much larger crowd than the previous shows here". 9. Faouet vs. Marseille Jr. Lyon, FranceL'EldoradoUnknownThe exact attendance figure is unknown, however, both events are described as having a "big crowd in attendance". "The Wildcat Wrestler" Faouet vs. Marseille Jr. Faouet vs. Ambroise "The Wildcat Wrestler" Faouet vs. "The Colossus of Savoy" Ambroise 10. The Great Unknown vs. Jules Rigal Bucharest, Romania Circus Suhr UnknownThe exact attendance figure is unknown, however, the event is described as being filled to capacity. "The Great Unknown" vs. Jules Rigal