PWHL 'Takeover Tour' a success as fan attendance soars to new high 

The PWHL has become the talk of the town after the tremendously successful 2025 Takeover Tour.

The innovative series helped to put women’s hockey on the map, drawing record-breaking crowds, attracting new fans and potentially sparking interest in league expansion. The tour, which ran from January through March, consisted of nine regular-season games held at a different neutral site throughout North America. All six PWHL teams participated in the first-year event.

On Friday, Alex Silverman of the Sports Business Journal reported that the Takeover Tour averaged 13,733 fans per game and drew in an astounding 123,601 people collectively.

The sixth stop on tour in Detroit pulled in jaw-dropping numbers.

“The crowd of 14,288 for a March 16 game at Little Caesars Arena between the New York Sirens and Minnesota Frost was the largest crowd ever for a professional women’s hockey game in the U.S.,” Silverman wrote via SportsBusinessJournal.com.

The PWHL is in its sophomore season and has six founding franchises throughout North America, including Boston, Minnesota, New York, Montréal, Ottawa and Toronto. However, with the popularity of the Takeover Tour, cities that hosted games throughout the series could be potential landing spots for league expansion.

According to the PWHL, an estimated 80 percent of Takeover Tour attendees experienced their first-ever PWHL game.

In addition to Detroit, the eight other cities that played host during the tour were Seattle, Vancouver, Denver, Quebec City, Edmonton, Buffalo, Raleigh (North Carolina) and St. Louis.

Pioneers in women’s hockey, such as Sarah Nurse, Kendall Coyne Schofield and others, advocated for a singular women’s professional league after the collapse of the Canada Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) and the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF), formerly named the National Women's Hockey League.

Sarah Nurse and Kendall Coyne Schofield, Nov. 6, 2024, Canada vs. United States - Source: Getty

Several players, including Nurse and Coyne Schofield, opted not to play in the PHF and instead formed the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association. Nurse and Coyne Schofield helped pave the way for the PWHL by participating in negotiations for the league’s collective bargaining agreement in 2023.

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Big games from PWHL Takeover Tour

The 2025 PWHL Takeover Tour is in the books, and players left it all on the ice while dazzling crowds at the nine hosting cities.

Here's a closer look at some of the big games that were played.

Montreal Victoire vs. Boston Fleet in Seattle - Source: Getty

#1. Boston Fleet vs. Montréal Victoire

The tour opened in Seattle on Jan. 5 with the Boston Fleet overcoming a two-goal deficit in the first period against the Montréal Victoire. The Fleet went on to win 3-2 in a shootout victory.

The PWHL showcased the game on its YouTube channel.

Fleet rookie Hannah Bilka was named First Star of the Game after scoring in the second period and then assisting on the game-tying goal.

#2. Toronto Sceptres vs. Ottawa Charge

On the tour's fifth stop, Daryl Watts and the Toronto Sceptres defeated the Ottawa Charge in a thrilling 3-2 overtime win on Feb. 16.

The Sceptres also posted the game highlights to their YouTube channel:

The sold-out crowd of 17,518 fans at Rogers Place in Edmonton watched on as Watts scored her second goal of the contest in the extra period to lift her squad to victory.