Crvena Zvezda breaks Eurocup attendance record tonight!

(Photo Credit: Eurocup Official Website)

The basketball-crazy Serbian capital of Belgrade is set to prove once again on Wednesday that it is second-to-none in fan devotion as Crvena Zvezda Telekom broke the Eurocup attendance record when it hosts Budivelnik Kiev in Game 2 of their quarterfinal series. More than 24.000 spectators attended the game.

Already, more than 15,500 tickets have been sold for the game, which will be held at Kombank Arena. The existing Eurocup record for attendance is 14,800 fans, set on March 21, 2004 - almost exactly 10 years ago - at Palacio Vistalegre in Madrid, Spain, when Estudiantes played city rival Real Madrid in Game 1 of the ULEB Cup semifinals. In the second most-attended game to date, 14,500 fans saw Alba Berlin defeat Hapoel Jerusalem in Game 2 of the 2010 quarterfinals in the German capital. 

Tonight's game could set the standard much higher. This is first Eurocup game that Zvezda, whose usual home court is the historic, 7,500-seat Hala Pionir, will play at Kombank Arena. Earlier this season, however, Zvezda hosted two Euroleague games there, drawing a high of 19,000 fans to its home opener against Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar. 

Kombank Arena is no stranger to records. It is the proud owner of the single-game record for attendance at an indoor basketball game in European club history. That piece of history was made on March 5, 2009, when 22,567 fans were counted for the Turkish Airlines Euroleague Top 16 clash between host Partizan Belgrade and visiting Panathinaikos Athens of Greece.