It was a spectacle worthy of a final.
A record crowd — nearly 17,000 people — at Alejandro Morera Soto Stadium on Monday night watched as their Codea Alajuelense beat Saprissa in the final of Costa Rican women’s club soccer.
Priscilla Chinchilla’s goal in the 64th minute was the deciding factor for the home team in a back-and-forth match that lived up to its billing.
The teams had tied, 1-1, last Thursday during the first leg of the final at Ricardo Saprissa Stadium in Tibás.
The result earned Codea Alajuelense’s first title, but perhaps more notably, it marked an important step for women’s soccer in Costa Rica.
The first leg had set a new club women’s soccer attendance record in Costa Rica with more than 6,600 attendees in Tibás. Monday’s final shattered that record by more than 10,000 people — the total attendance figures topped 16,900 people, according to the club.
Aside from the record crowd, more than 40,000 people watched the final moments via the TD Más official online stream.
The attendance records come as FIFA explores the possibility of hosting the 2020 Under-20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica. President Carlos Alvarado has said the Costa Rican government will “work hard” to make hosting the World Cup a reality.
The country previously hosted the U-17 Women’s World Cup in 2014.
