WNBA champions break massive attendance record even without Caitlin Clark

The back-to-back champions are the first achieve the feat in WNBA history.

Jun 21, 2024 - 23:30

0 6

WNBA champions break massive attendance record even without Caitlin Clark

The Las Vegas Aces became the first WNBA team since the early 2000s to win back-to-back titles. But this year, just a month into the season, the organization achieved another feat that no team has done in the league's 28-year history.

On Thursday, June 20, the Aces announced that it has become the first team in WNBA history to sell out all of its home games for an entire season. That's 12 more sellouts for the Aces, who are 7-6 to start the season and 4-4 at home.

The news also comes just days after Sportico announced that the Las Vegas Aces are valued at $140 million, making them the WNBA's most valuable franchise.

Does this achievement diminish The Caitlin Clark Effect?

The WNBA has seen a massive upswing in viewership and attendance this season. The league even announced that in May, it saw its highest attendance in a single month in league history.

The league has also had multiple games watched by over a million viewers, including when it saw 2.3 million viewers tuned into the CBS broadcast of Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever against Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky on Sunday, June 16. That was the most-watched WNBA game in the last 23 years.

The Aces' achievement is noteworthy because the team does not have Clark, nor have they even played the Fever yet this season.

But two things could be true: The Aces could have a growing fanbase, and Clark could directly or indirectly be a catalyst for the WNBA's growth.

The Aces were already leading the league in attendance last year, averaging 9,551 fans in Michelob Ultra Arena, according to Across The Timeline. That nearly doubled the 5,606 fans the team averaged in 2022.

This year, the Aces have raised that number to over 10,300 fans per game.

But the Aces are not even in the top three in attendance in the league this season. Clark's Indiana Fever is far and away the league's most-watched team, averaging 16,757 fans in Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN. The New York Liberty are second at 12,382 fans, while the Seattle Storm follow at 10,406 average attendance per contest.

The discrepancy can be explained by the seating capacity of each team's stadium. Gainbridge Fieldhouse, where the NBA's Indiana Pacers also play, can hold around 18,000 fans, according to the Encyclopedia of Indianapolis.

More Women’s Basketball:

Meanwhile, the Michelob Ultra Arena only holds about 12,000 fans, according to MGM Resorts.

These numbers are clearly an indication that the league as a whole is growing in large part because of the arrival of Clark. Likewise, a team with the success and star power of the Aces can succeed on its own as well while also feeling the ripple effects of the added attention driven by Clark.

Original Post