Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark has earned a well deserved rest, that after also earning her WNBA respect. But although she may not be taking the court again until the Fever resume play on August 16th, her effect has been felt all across the league. The W is fresh off a record-setting All-Star Game, just secured a big new media rights deal, and has seen merchandise sales surge. Clark is clearly the driving force behind the explosive growth, something the WNBA does not deny.
The league’s Chief Growth Officer Colie Edison told the Indianapolis Star exactly that during All-Star weekend. “I’m not gonna deny the Caitlin Clark effect. And we’ve really seen it most importantly in viewership, you know, our average viewership numbers are over 1.2 million. And so that sort of growth is important because we’re opening the aperture and bringing in new fans. So Caitlin was really a catalyst to bringing in a lot of new fans, as well as our other rookies, who came in through NCAA into this draft. It’s been an amazing draft class to watch.”
That average viewership number of 1.2 million referenced is particularly staggering given the W had not seen a number over million since 2008 prior to this season. Meanwhile, Fever games routinely far exceed a million viewers. That upward trend goes for attendance as well, as the team is first overall with an average of 16,698 fans per contest. Up from around 4,000 a season ago. With some opposing teams also notably moving into bigger arenas to accommodate demand when Indy has come into town.
So it probably shouldn’t be newsworthy for the league to acknowledge the effect of Clark, because it has been obvious to anyone paying attention. With a lot more people falling into that category now, since so many are clearly watching.
Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark has earned a well-deserved rest after making her mark in the WNBA. Although she won’t be back on the court until the Fever resume play on August 16th, her impact is already reverberating across the league. The WNBA is riding high on the momentum of a record-setting All-Star Game, a lucrative new media rights deal, and a surge in merchandise sales—all indicators that Clark is driving the league’s explosive growth, a fact the WNBA readily acknowledges.
During All-Star weekend, the league’s Chief Growth Officer, Colie Edison, spoke to the Indianapolis Star about this very phenomenon. “I’m not gonna deny the Caitlin Clark effect. And we’ve really seen it most importantly in viewership. Our average viewership numbers are over 1.2 million. And so that sort of growth is important because we’re opening the aperture and bringing in new fans. Caitlin was really a catalyst to bringing in a lot of new fans, as well as our other rookies, who came in through NCAA into this draft. It’s been an amazing draft class to watch.”
The significance of that average viewership number—1.2 million—cannot be overstated. The WNBA hadn’t seen a number over a million since 2008 before this season. Fever games, in particular, are consistently surpassing a million viewers. This upward trend extends to attendance as well; the Fever currently lead the league with an average of 16,698 fans per game, a dramatic increase from around 4,000 a season ago. Some opposing teams have even moved into larger arenas to accommodate the growing demand when Indiana comes to town.
Given these numbers, it shouldn’t be surprising that the league is acknowledging Clark’s influence. Her effect on the WNBA has been obvious to anyone paying attention, and now, with more eyes on the league than ever before, her impact is impossible to ignore.
