MLB has been diligent in recent years to try and expand baseball's fan base and reach audiences that normally don't follow along. Some of that has been on the international side as the league has played games in Tokyo, Seoul, Mexico City, and Monterrey. However, MLB is also looking to expand the game's appeal within the US and the 2025 Speedway Classic featuring the Atlanta Braves taking on the Reds might be the most successful example by the numbers.
For those that are somehow unaware, the Speedway Classic is a game that will happen on August 2 on a field that the league has built inside of Bristol Motor Speedway. Interest in the game has been exceedingly high since it was announced, but most observers probably didn't expect the game to break attendance.
However, that is exactly what has happened as, by tickets actually sold, will be the highest attended baseball game in baseball history. The previous mark was 84,587 from a matchup between the Yankees and Indians.
JUST IN: The 2025 Speedway Classic is set to break MLB's regular season attendance record with more than 85,000 tickets sold to date.
— MLB (@MLB) July 28, 2025
This game will eclipse the previous paid attendance record of 84,587 set on September 12, 1954, when Cleveland Stadium hosted the New York… pic.twitter.com/cn693QJTxt
Braves' Speedway Classic matchup poised to claim all-time attendance record
While it will be weird to see a major league game take place on a temporary field built inside a race track, there are some perks to playing at Bristol. Bristol Motor Speedway has a capacity, under normal conditions, of 146,000 people and with the level of interest in this game, having that added capacity is going to help out.
Of note, there is some debate as to what the actual attendance record is, but this is the official number of paid attendance that MLB uses. Back in March 2008, 115,300 people watched the Red Sox and Dodgers play an exhibition game at the Los Angeles Coliseum, but this game could rival that with several days before the game.
This isn't the first time the Braves have been involved in a special MLB game. Back in 2016, Atlanta participated in the Fort Bragg Game against the Marlins, though the 12,582 in attendance due to a much smaller venue on a military base is going to be dwarfed by what we see at Bristol this coming weekend.