Caitlin Clark has had a massive influence on WNBA ticket sales and viewership after just one official game in the league.
Clark, the number-one draft pick for the Indiana Fever, scored 20 points in her professional debut, a recent 92-71 loss to the Connecticut Sun. It wasn’t the score sheet that the league is necessarily concerned about, however.
The appearance of Clark at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, meant the home team had a sold-out crowd of 8,910.
According to a report by Sportscasting, Clark’s presence sent the prices at the Sun’s game skyrocketing by a shocking 469% when compared to the cheapest ticket price for the next Connecticut game. That is a jump from $13 to $74 for what is called a “get in” price.
With five away games in May 2024, Clark is inflating prices of tickets everywhere she goes.
A visit to play the New York Liberty at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn jumped ticket prices by 300%, from $21 to $84.
In Seattle, Washington, the Clark effect will see prices increase from $26 to $70 (169%), while a trip to Los Angeles will only make for a $7 increase, or 15%, from $45 to $52.
When Indiana visits the Las Vegas Aces on May 25, 2024, however, ticket prices compared to the next Aces home game will be a difference of 2,200%. That means when Clark is in the house the ticket prices will be at $92 before dropping (along with jaws) to just $4.
Overall, games that feature Clark that month will average $74.40 for a “get in” price, while the following home games average $21.80. That’s a league-wide increase of 241.28%.
‘The super-woke WNBA could blow this, though. Her peers are jealous, and her teammates might be unwilling to put their egos aside and let Caitlin be Caitlin.’
The same sold-out loss to the Connecticut Sun not only packed the arena and maxed out ticket prices, but it also had gigantic viewership for a WNBA game.
The game drew an average of 2.13 million viewers on ESPN2, all while going head-to-head with the NBA Playoffs at the same time.
As reported by OutKick, that was the most watched WNBA game in almost exactly 23 years. A Memorial Day game on May 28, 2001, between the Los Angeles Sparks and Houston Comets was watched by an average of 2.45 million viewers on NBC.
While the game was watched by two million fewer eyes than its male counterpart, it actually beat an NHL playoff hockey game on the main ESPN channel.
Blaze TV’s Jason Whitlock said that while Clark is making waves, it wouldn’t be surprising for the WNBA to shoot itself in the foot.
“Caitlin is the most fascinating athlete in sports right now. That’s never been true for an American female athlete. The super-woke WNBA could blow this, though,” Whitlock remarked. “Her peers are jealous, and her teammates might be unwilling to put their egos aside and let Caitlin be Caitlin. Indiana’s coach is in a difficult situation. She’s probably in over her head. We shall see.”
In that regard, fellow WNBA player A’Ja Wilson recently claimed in an interview that Clark’s popularity was mostly due to her race. Wilson complained that black female athletes tend not to get endorsements and are “swept under the rug.”
After the interview took place but before it was publicized, Wilson signed endorsement deals with both Nike and Gatorade.
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