The gap in viewership between the NBA and WNBA is closing rapidly, especially when Caitlin Clark is involved.
We now live in a world where comparing the WNBA to the NBA directly from a viewership standpoint is no longer a laughable proposition, with the most recent returns emphasizing how the gap between the two leagues is indeed closing.. This is particularly interesting considering Caitlin Clark's debut with the Indiana Fever, which aired on ESPN 2 and was the first major WNBA telecast on the network for the 2024 season, drew 2.1 million viewers.
But the trends show the friendly competition could continue to grow closer over time. To be clear, overall, the difference in viewership still remains heavily in favor of the NBA. It must also be noted that contests featuring Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever performed 199% better that other matchups over the course of the season, with those games pulling in an average of 1.19 million viewers regardless of network,
Other tentpole events also produced much bigger numbers than in previous years for the WNBA. The WNBA Draft drew 2.45 million viewers, compared to the 4.41 million for the NBA. While the WNBA All-Star Game had an audience of 3.44 million to the NBA's 5.5 million.for the New York Liberty's win over the Minnesota Lynx, the WNBA Finals still have a long way to go to catch up with its NBA counterpart. Game 5 in the WNBA had an average of 2.
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