Why the WNBA’s Best Days Are Ahead

Growth in viewership, merchandising, global reach & facilities

The WNBA has significant potential for growth and is experiencing an exciting influx of talent. The league's future is bright with upcoming prospects like Paige Bueckers and Juju Watkins joining stars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. Since Clark and Reese entered the league, they have significantly impacted attendance and merchandise sales. The Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky have seen attendance increases of 308% and 14%, respectively. Furthermore, Clark and Reese's jersey sales ranked first and second in the 2024 season and contributed to a 600% increase in league merchandise sales.

As a league, the WNBA has seen a surge in viewership and attendance. From 2023 to the 2024 season, there was a 170% increase in viewership across ABC and ESPN networks. In addition to this, last year saw the league achieve its highest average attendance in the last 22 years. The average attendance increased from 6,615 to 9,807 (48% single-year increase), conveying a strong boost in demand for ticket sales. This growing viewership trend was highlighted in the All-Star Game on July 20, 2024, which became the single most-viewed women’s basketball game since 1997. This follows a similar trend in women’s college basketball, where the 2024 National Championship game saw the most-viewed women’s college game of all time. When Iowa faced South Carolina, the game attracted 18.7 million viewers, which was 3.9 million more than the men’s National Championship in the same year.

The league has also skyrocketed in exposure in terms of its social media and internationalization efforts. The WNBA App, launched in 2023, showed a 252% uplift in monthly active users for the 2024 season. In terms of overall engagement, the WNBA’s accounts platforms hit nearly 2 billion views across all social media, an increase of 429% from 2023. The WNBA has a compelling amount of eyes on the current shift of the league, and the league has done a good job marketing its product on social media. The league has also expanded into international territories to offer viewership to more consumers of the brand. For the 2024 season, new international broadcasting distribution deals included the UK, Taiwan, China, Brazil, and the Philippines. In addition, WNBA games aired or streamed in 207 countries and territories last season. Another major women’s sports league in the US, the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), also has a broad broadcast reach of 130 countries through various international media partnerships. The WNBA’s international expansion reflects a broader momentum in women’s sport, with global audiences increasingly tuning in and new markets opening up for future growth.

Furthermore, the facilities and resources of each team will likely see upgrades as well. In the NWSL, teams are investing a significant amount of capital in plans for improving their franchises. The recently announced expansion team in Denver is in the process of building a 14,500-seat venue set to open in 2028, and the Kansas City Current opened their 11,500-seat CPKC Stadium last year. This will be an important investment trend for WNBA owners to keep an eye on while deciding if they want to prioritize upgraded facilities in strategic planning.

Behind-the-scenes action

Growth of the WNBA has led to negotiations between the players' association and the WNBA about restructuring the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) in order for the players to benefit from the increased profit earned from the league. The Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) is the labor union that represents the players of the WNBA, which was founded in 1998. Nneka Ogwumike serves as President, and Unrivaled League co-founders Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier serve as the VPs. One of the biggest topics of discussion is the recently created 11-year media deal worth over 2.2 billion dollars, which is four times the size of the previous media deal. The new agreement is set to begin in the 2026 off-season. Once the new bargaining deal is set, the players will likely see increased salaries, benefits, family support, and travel conditions.

Another point to highlight in the CBA is the prioritization rule for international players that does not permit its players to compete in alternate leagues. For international WNBA players wanting to earn their desired wages, players want to play in both the W as well as European leagues, which could offer star players up to six-figure salaries on top of their WNBA salary. Thus, it is vital that during negotiations, the players’ association creates an addendum that could benefit players and their families without taking any talent away from the WNBA and the players' opportunity to play for their respective national teams. While wanting to dominate women’s professional basketball, the league aims to remain the most attractive and player-friendly league as well.

Due to the anticipation of the new CBA in 2026, the current 2025 off-season contains numerous changes in preparation for this new agreement. The key free agents are looking to sign short-term one-year contracts so that they can renegotiate their contracts when the new deal kicks in for the WNBA. Some of the top talent in the league, such as Kelsey Plum and Breanna Stewart, have signed year-long deals in hopes of taking advantage of the 2026 off-season. The biggest off-season transitions so far are Kelsey Plum being traded to the Sparks from the Las Vegas Aces, as well as Brianna Turner teaming up with Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever. Additionally, the Golden State Valkyries will be the thirteenth team starting in the 2025 season. The expansion draft started in late 2024, where each team had to designate players who could not be selected in the draft and taken from their team.

Furthermore, the facilities and resources of each team will likely see upgrades as well. In the NWSL, teams are investing a significant amount of capital in plans for improving their franchises. The recently announced expansion team in Denver is in the process of building a 14,500-seat venue set to open in 2028, and the Kansas City Current opened their 11,500-seat CPKC Stadium last year. This will be an important investment trend for WNBA owners to keep an eye on while deciding if they want to prioritize upgraded facilities in strategic planning.

Leadership revamp

The 2025 WNBA off-season has also been home to a large number of team leadership changes. Over 60% of the teams will be led by new head coaches in the upcoming season. One of the main reasons for the multitude of changes could stem from the new media rights deal and the upcoming bargaining agreement. Teams are expecting an influx of money, and therefore, it can be argued that owners and general managers are looking to spend their money on the most qualified and well-experienced coaches ready to handle the evolving landscape of the league. Previously, top women’s college basketball coaches had been apprehensive of making the switch to coach in the professional leagues due to generally lower salaries and benefits. However, with the rapid improvements of the WNBA, coaches are now more inclined to pursue their careers in the professional league.

Of the 8 new head coaches in the league, 3 are transferring from the NCAA. Atlanta Dream’s new coach, Karl Smesko, has worked as Florida Gulf Coast University’s women’s head coach for the past 23 years. In a January 2025 interview with Locked On Women’s Basketball, Smesko referenced the timing of “the W[NBA] exploding in popularity” and an opportunity that he “could not pass up.” Thus, talent is becoming increasingly excited about the future of the league and wants to play a part in its upcoming growth.

Additionally, teams are switching up their front office and organizational structure to become even more competitive with the consistent top performers in the league. Teams with larger headcounts seem to allocate resources more efficiently, with the New York Liberty’s league-leading employee headcount of 40 likely playing a key role in their 2024 WNBA Championship. While a larger headcount can enhance resource allocation, our analysis suggests that performance relies on more than just staff size but also effective leadership, strategic decision-making, and execution, which are crucial pieces in the analysis of winning franchises.

Over a third of the association’s teams have had general manager turnover this year. By going through this change, franchises and owners are looking to redesign the internal structure of their teams to compete with storied franchises in the league. In terms of the background of the 5 recently hired WNBA general managers, they come from varying experiences. 2 of the new GMs were former WNBA players, staying in the league but transitioning into front office roles. One of the hires this off-season, Curt Miller, comes from a coaching background, and his most recent appointment was the head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks. The final 2 new GMs in the league have commercial archetypes in operations and marketing. Indiana Fever's current GM, Amber Cox, has a marketing background and has found success in multiple leadership positions across different sports. After working with the Phoenix Mercury, she saw progress while working in lacrosse and returned to the WNBA from the NWSL.

The future of the WNBA

The WNBA’s recent surge in popularity, talent, and revenue demonstrates that the league is not just ‘having a moment’, but it’s cementing itself as a major sports league. With a new wave of superstars capturing the attention of fans worldwide, expanding media exposure, and strategic changes in both front office and coaching, the league is positioning itself for sustainable success. The media rights deal and upcoming CBA indicate a new era of financial growth and player empowerment. As global interest in women’s basketball continues to rise, the WNBA is laying the groundwork to become an even more dominant force in the sports industry. Therefore, if the league can handle this important period in its history, the best days of the WNBA are just getting started.

At Sportsology Group, we continuously aim to gain a deeper understanding of what it takes to succeed in a growing league like the WNBA. This can relate to the way decisions are being made on a leadership level within the broader organization, where effective processes in player development come into the operating model, and where executive talent in the league comes from. If you're interested in understanding the evolving landscape of Women’s Basketball, or broader Women's Sports, and how our Strategic Advisory and Executive Search expertise can support your organization, please get in touch.