Wave (audience)
example of metachronal rhythm achieved in a packed stadium
The wave (also Mexican wave outside North America) is a type of metachronal rhythm achieved in a packed stadium or other large seated venue, when successive groups of spectators briefly stand and raise their arms. Immediately upon stretching to full height, the spectator returns to the usual seated position.
The result is a wave of standing spectators that travels through the crowd, even though individual spectators never move away from their seats. In many large arenas the crowd is seated in a contiguous circuit all the way around the sport field, and so the wave is able to travel continuously around the arena; in discontiguous seating arrangements, the wave can instead reflect back and forth through the crowd. When the gap in seating is narrow, the wave can sometimes pass through it. Usually only one wave crest will be present at any given time in an arena, although simultaneous, counter-rotating waves have been produced.
The wave first appeared in U.S. sports events in the late 1970s to early 1980s. Televised instances at many matches of the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico brought it to a global audience and led to the name "Mexican wave" in English-speaking countries outside North America.
Origins and variations
Krazy George Henderson
On November 15, 1979, the wave originated at a National Hockey League (NHL) game between the Colorado Rockies and Montreal Canadiens at McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado.
Krazy George Henderson perfected the wave at National Hockey League games, followed later by the earliest available video documentation of a wave, which he led on October 15, 1981, at a Major League Baseball game in Oakland, California.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Wave (audience)” is example of metachronal rhythm achieved in a packed stadium. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Wave, audience and example, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “example of metachronal rhythm achieved in a packed stadium” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1055040. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1986, 1979 and 1981.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Wave (audience)”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Wave (audience) primary sources, Wave (audience) archive and Wave research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Wave (audience)”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Wave (audience)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.