Georgia women's soccer team breaks NCAA attendance record with crowd of 25,433

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Georgia goalkeeper Jordan Brown (1) leads the team through a banner before the match against James Madison at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026, ahead of a one-off match commemorates the 30th anniversary of the 1996 Olympic women's soccer gold-medal match played at Sanford Stadium. (Evan Frilingos/The Red & Black via AP)

James Madison forward Olivia Del Toro (10) dribbles past Georgia midfielder Kiera Staude (11) and Georgia midfielder Kieryn Jeter (22) in the first half of a soccer match in Athens, Ga,, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026.. (Photo/Evan Frilingos — Georgia goalkeeper Jordan Brown (1) leads the team through a banner before the match against James Madison at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026, ahead of a one-off match commemorates the 30th anniversary of the 1996 Olympic women's soccer gold-medal match played at Sanford Stadium. (Evan Frilingos/The Red & Black via AP)

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8:29 PM on Thursday, August 20

The Associated Press

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — The University of Georgia women's soccer team broke the NCAA attendance record for men or women with a crowd of 25,433 on Thursday night at Sanford Stadium for a 6-0 victory over James Madison.

Honoka Hamano scored twice for Georgia in the “Soccer in Sanford” match honoring the 30th anniversary of the United States women’s gold-medal victory over China in the 1996 Olympics at the iconic 93,033-seat football stadium.

The crowd broke the women's mark of 14,410 set in the 1999 NCAA championship between North Carolina and Notre Dame in San Jose, California. The previous overall mark was 22,512 for a 1980 men's game at Busch Stadium in St. Louis between Saint Louis and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville.

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