The WNBA All-Star Game reached a historic milestone Saturday, drawing 3.44 million viewers on ABC, the highest audience for the event in 21 years. This viewership surpasses the previous record set in 2003, when 1.441 million tuned in to watch a matchup at Madison Square Garden. The 2003 WNBA All-Star Game featured legends like Lisa Leslie, Sue Bird and Sheryl Swoopes.
The increased interest can be attributed to the star power of Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, who played pivotal roles in leading Team WNBA to victory against the U.S. women’s national team. Clark and Reese, two of the league’s most prominent rookies, have consistently drawn large audiences this season. Clark has played in 15 of the 17 WNBA games that have topped 1 million viewers this year. Notably, the two most-watched regular-season games involved matchups between Clark’s Indiana Fever and Reese’s Chicago Sky, each attracting over 2 million viewers.
However, it’s not just the sheer number of viewers that has shifted; the demographics of the WNBA’s audience have also changed. Every demographic category has seen at least a double-digit increase in viewership, with the biggest gains among young viewers, male viewers and white viewers.
The WNBA has also improved its television offerings, with more national broadcasts and consistent game schedules on platforms like Prime and Ion, making the games easier to find and follow. While many sports struggle to maintain young audiences, the WNBA has seen its numbers skyrocket. On ESPN networks, the viewership of girls aged 2-17 has surged by 181%, and viewers aged 18-34 are outpacing the league’s total growth by 54 percentage points.
“This weekend’s extraordinary viewership underscores women’s sports’ exponential growth, and ESPN is proud to showcase this incredible league and its exceptional athletes on such a grand stage,” said Julie Sobieski, ESPN SVP of League Programming and Acquisitions, via Richard Deitsch of The Athletic.
Other WNBA events drawing larger audiences
The 2024 All-Star Game, aired in prime time on ABC for the second consecutive year, also saw Arike Ogunbowale set an All-Star Game record with 34 points in the second half, earning her second All-Star MVP award.
In addition to the All-Star Game, other WNBA events have seen increases in viewership. The 2024 WNBA Draft drew an average of 2.446 million viewers on ESPN, a 307% increase from the previous year. This shattered the previous draft viewership record set in 2004 when Diana Taurasi entered the league, drawing 601,000 viewers. Last year’s draft, which saw 572,000 viewers, was previously celebrated as the highest since 2004, marking a 42% increase from 2022.
The surge in interest for the WNBA Draft is part of a broader trend of growing audience engagement with women’s basketball. The 2024 NCAA women’s basketball championship game between South Carolina and Iowa drew 18.9 million viewers, the highest ever for a women’s college basketball game. It surpassed even men’s college basketball games on ESPN platforms. The Women’s Final Four averaged 13.8 million viewers, with the Iowa-UConn game brinigng in 14.4 million viewers.
Viewership averaged 2.2 million per game throughout the NCAA tournament, a 121% increase from the previous year.
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