Michigan smashed the world record for a ice hockey event by pulling in maximum crowds. The huge crowd shrugged off a wind-chill factor of just above freezing to smash the previous record for an ice hockey match, set at this year’s World Hockey Championships in Germany, by more than 35,000 fans. Back in May, the Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen pulled in 77,803 spectators for Germany’s 2-1 win over the United States.
Michigan and Michigan State attracted an attendance of 74,544 when they clashed at Michigan State's Spartan Stadium in 2001, and since 2008 the NHL has adopted the idea by staging outdoor games through the annual Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium in New York, Wrigley Field in Chicago and Fenway Park in Boston.