Indiana Fever and former University of Iowa guard Caitlin Clark, who currently holds the record for the most points scored of all-time in NCAA history, debuted her WNBA career in May against the Connecticut Sun. Although Clark opened with a rocky start with ten turnovers (and that being a WNBA debut record), her turnover record was not the only way Clark made history that night. The Fever versus Suns game averaged 1.56 million viewers, becoming the most watched WNBA game on ESPN in history. This pattern continued throughout the season, with a rise in viewership by 170% as compared to the 2023 season.
Clark has had direct causation to this viewership. Out of the top ten most viewed games, nine out of ten featured Clark. In fact, on September 11, the Fever’s game versus the Las Vegas Aces outperformed the NBA’s greatest viewership the 2023 playoffs between the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks.
Clark was not the only player to have great impacts on the WNBA’s recent rise in popularity. Chicago Sky’s forward, Angel Reese, has been rivals with Clark since their NCAAW days, which has gained national attention over social media. As Clark and Reese are both WNBA rookies, their transfer of their rivalry into professional basketball has piqued the interest of fans. They have each brought their own fans from college basketball to the WNBA as reflected in the viewership statistics, being crucial points in the newfound acclaim. The two stars have been showcasing to this new world of fans what they’ve been missing in women’s sports arenas being filled to about 94% capacity.
Clark and Reese’s presence have been critical factors in bringing in this recognition to women’s sports. Clark alone has already broken countless WNBA records in this first year, some of which include the franchise record for the most double-doubles in a season and most three pointers in a season, the first rookie to make two triple-doubles, the most assists by a rookie in the All-Star Game, most assists in a single game, etc.
The recognition these women are getting for their hard work and skill is long overdue.
It’s common knowledge that women’s sports are far overlooked compared to the male grounds, and low sports attendance is already a regularly highlighted discussion on the LACES campus. Perhaps this spike in women’s sports can inspire LACES students to support our girl’s teams. Perhaps this inspiration can go beyond basketball and onto other girl’s sports at our school who deserve the recognition for the time and hard work they put into going to practices and playing in games.
It’s time for change.
