- More than 2.4 million people watched the 2024 WNBA Draft — destroying the previous viewership record for the league.
- There was roughly a +307% increase from the previous WNBA Draft record, set in 2004.
- The 2024 WNBA Draft had more viewers than the latest MLB and NHL Draft broadcasts.
Interest in women’s basketball continues to be at an all-time high after Caitlin Clark departed Iowa for the WNBA. According to 2024 WNBA Draft viewership figures, the league catapulted past the previous record from 2004.
Approximately 2.45 million viewers watched Clark selected as the No. 1 pick of the 2024 WNBA Draft. She wasn’t the only prominent player being drafted into the WNBA on Monday evening, though.
Along with Clark, Stanford’s Cameron Brink, LSU’s Angel Reese, and South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso heard their names called at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. While Clark gains recognition for drumming up more interest in women’s basketball, the 2024 WNBA Draft was loaded with talent.
The previous record for the WNBA Draft viewership was broken in 2004 when 600,000 tuned in to watch the Phoenix Mercury draft UConn’s Diana Taurasi first. The Mercury’s Taurasi recently made headlines by warning Clark that “reality is coming”.
At any rate, 307% more viewers watched the 2024 WNBA Draft than 20 years ago.
WNBA Draft Surpasses MLB and NHL Draft Viewership Numbers
The WNBA Draft managed to attract more eyeballs than the latest MLB and NHL Drafts. The 2023 MLB Draft recorded 744,000 viewers, while the 2023 NHL Entry Draft had 681,000 viewers tune in to watch in June 2023.
The WNBA didn’t reach the NBA’s numbers but beating other sports was impressive enough. The latest NBA Draft registered 3.74 million viewers, to put the WNBA down by more than a million. Nevertheless, it was still an unbelievable accomplishment for a league on the rise.
In addition to the record-breaking viewers for a WNBA Draft, it was the most-watched WNBA programming since a 2000 Memorial Day game between the New York Liberty and Houston Comets.
A record 2.74 million tuned in for that matchup, which still holds the record for the highest-watched WNBA event. Is it only a matter of time before a WNBA game eclipses that mark? Given the latest trends with WNBA viewership, it appears that it will happen sooner rather than later.
WNBA Jersey and Ticket Sales Surge
As more people watched the WNBA Draft, they were buying merchandise as well. Clark’s Indiana Fever jersey earned the honor of being the top-selling jersey ever for a draft pick.
Per Fanatics, they were busy processing jersey sales: Clark broke the record for most jerseys bought on the website in one night. Jacksonville Jaguars’ quarterback Trevor Lawrence held the previous record, with Clark easily surpassing that mark.
In addition to more viewers and jersey sales, fans are buying tickets to WNBA games. The Washington Mystics said that the team is looking at moving select games from the Sports and Entertainment Arena to Capital One Arena to accommodate the higher ticket sales.
Mystics Chief Business Officer, Alycen McAuley, said that demand for tickets is high right now, with some going for over $280 on Ticketmaster and SeatGeet.
It has been increasing over time as more and more people are interested. Here in D.C. the demand is greater than the number of seats we have and it’s really driven that.
McAuley acknowledges that Clark is a significant reason why interest in women’s basketball has skyrocketed. The star’s Iowa Hawkeyes were responsible for breaking women’s college basketball viewership records and passing the NBA in TV ratings.
We owe a debt of gratitude to Caitlin Clark and the other first round picks including Aaliyah Edwards. They just really showcase that exceptional talent, some intense rivalries, some games and consequence that fans get into and now I just think they’re just really excited to see those stories continue in the WNBA.
The 2024 WNBA regular season tips off on Tuesday, May 14. Clark and the Indiana Fever travel to Connecticut to take on the Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena.
The latest WNBA odds suggest it’s going to be another strong season for the reigning champions Las Vegas Aces, but can the new crop change that?
