Caitlin Clark Makes Strong Statement About the Future of the WNBA
2024 Rookie of the Year believes league's current popularity is just tip of the iceberg
It’s safe to say that 2024 was an unprecedented year for the WNBA.
The league set numerous records for television and attendance numbers plus merchandise sales, and Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark and Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese were at the forefront of it all.
As the WNBA steps into its new media-rights deal with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon that runs through the 2036 and is expected to funnel $125 million back into the league each year, and with the influx of new stars-in-the-making like Paige Buckers and Juju Watkins set to join the league in the coming years, the WNBA’s popularity is expected to continue on an upward trajectory.
Speaking at a recent Nike event, Clark admitted that helping to put the sport on the map is one of the things she’s most proud of and she believes things are only going to explode from here.
“From the amount of people that have showed up in the stadiums, from the viewership numbers to people really wanting to wear a WNBA player’s jersey or buy their merch or whatever it is, or have their shoe — just how it’s evolved in such a short period of time shows everyone there is real opportunity here and there has been opportunity here,” Clark said.
“The more we can continue to expand that and continue to have games on national television and get people in seats because when they show up at a stadium, they’re always coming back. That’s usually how it works — they fall in love with a team or a player…the more people that can get out and watch the W or watch the college game, the better it’s going to be for the future of the game.”
The WNBA hasn’t been in a better place ratings-wise with more people watching the league now than ever before.
Per Sportico, nine of the 10 most-watched WNBA broadcasts this season involved Clark, including the All-Star game and the WNBA Draft — all of which drew 1.87 million viewers or more.
The only game in the top 10 that Clark wasn’t a part of was Game 5 of the WNBA Finals on Sunday, which saw a 142% increase from last year’s deciding Finals game.
