This past season, the WNBA has amassed the largest viewing audience they’ve ever had. Undoubtedly, there has always been talent in both college and professional women’s basketball, however, current female athletes are drawing in larger crowds than ever before. Some factors that are responsible for this influx include big names in college basketball, the increase in sponsorships and investments, as well as attention on social media. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert says that the partnerships in this era of the WNBA are bringing a “significant rise in value and the historic level of interest in women’s basketball.”
Last NCAA season, college athletes like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers, names who are now recognizable for their incredible talent, made a stamp on audiences. Caitlin Clark, for example, became the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer across both mens and womens basketball. Her incredible talent went viral on tiktok, drawing more fans into college basketball. After an extremely successful college career, she was drafted into the 2024 season by the Indiana Fever.
Along with our very own New York Liberty winning the WNBA Finals and ending the season with a bang, many statistics have been published displaying the increase in audience size. As support for the WNBA continues to rise, the league has been granted prime evening TV time slots, giving them the chance to engage with new audience members. As a result, “The WNBA had its highest total attendance in 22 years (2,353,735), up 48% from last season. The league’s 154 sellouts marked a 242% increase from last season (45).” The sharp increase indicates the league’s recent success of attracting fans to games, which, luckily for everyone involved, leads to growing profits from merchandise. According to the WNBA, “merchandise sales are seeing a 236% increase year-over-year, with Clark, Reese, and [Cameron] Brink ranking in the top five for jersey sales during the first week of the season.” The WNBA, slowly but surely, is taking its seat in the ring of American sports culture.
Young girls around the country, and world, are noticing the growing appreciation for female athletes. There is something so beautiful and powerful about young girls with dreams. Thanks to the recent broadcasted success of these female athletes, young girls are seeing that their dreams can be realized. As female athletes age, they begin to chase the idea of becoming a professional. This difficult goal is achieved by the dedication and hard work of a small fraction of these athletes. For some this is meaningless as professional female athletes often go unrecognized, but with the rise of attention to the WNBA, fans are not only helping a young girl achieve her dreams of playing in the big leagues, rather they are helping truly any athlete. The world we live in and the standards we live by are ever changing, and now more than ever we deserve to raise up young athletes to be the next championship winners and record breakers.