The Essendon Football Club is pleased to announce it has reached its highest ever club membership.

The Bombers have more than 86,003 members, its faithful members and supporters have shown unwavering commitment to the club and they thank everyone for their support.

President David Barham praised the club’s members and said for more than 150 years Bombers fans have been loyal, passionate and steadfast. 

“No one has more committed and loyal members than the Essendon Football Club,” Barham said.

“We thank every single member for your unwavering support this season and to break a club membership record has been an incredible achievement. You’ve supported us in the stands, watching your TVs, listening to your radios and engaging with us online. The Bomber faithful are unrivalled in your commitment to this club.

“Tomorrow night is a great opportunity to come together. Returning to the MCG in front of a big home crowd to cheer the team on together. It is a huge lift for our whole club to have our final home game at the MCG with all our members and supporters. We look forward to packing out the MCG in red and black.

“We are stronger together.”

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Marquee fixtures generated immense turnout from the Bombers faithful this season, including a massive crowd of 83,638 for the inaugural King’s Birthday Eve clash against the Blues in round 13.

With a total attendance of 1,011,012 for the season to date, a crowd of more than 80,000 for this Friday night’s clash with Collingwood will see the Bombers crack their highest season attendance in more than 20 years. A season 2023 total TV broadcast audience of 9,312,369 highlights Essendon’s national attraction in households across the country.

The Bombers’ matchup with the Pies also marks the first time since round five of the 2020 season that the traditional rivals have met on a Friday night, with their most recent encounter on ANZAC Day this year hosting a season-high 95,179 fans at the MCG.

Essendon thanks its members and supporters for their support of the club and its players.

“There’s nothing more motivating than playing in front of the red and black faithful. We thank you and we look forward to uniting together in 2024 as we strive to bring success back to Essendon,” Barham said.