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Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever will be featured on 41 nationally televised or streamed games in the upcoming WNBA season, the most of any franchise.
Of Indiana’s 44 games, 10 will be on ABC/ESPN while eight will air on ION.
The Fever played 36 of their 40 2024 regular-season games on national broadcasts. With the WNBA expanding its schedule to 44 games this season, it’s unsurprising Indiana’s total increased. Last year, six different WNBA television partners set viewership records for their highest WNBA game. All six involved Fever telecasts.
The WNBA set several other viewership records a season ago. ESPN’s WNBA broadcasts increased 170 percent compared to 2023, making it the network’s most-viewed regular season ever. The 2024 WNBA All-Star Game amassed 3.4 million viewers, making it the largest audience ever for the summer exhibition. The 2024 WNBA Draft (2.4 million viewers) was its most-viewed draft ever.
The 2024 WNBA Finals between the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx were also the most-watched finals in 25 years.
“The WNBA is coming off a 2024 season in which incredible basketball and countless memorable performances paved the way for the WNBA to deliver a record-breaking season,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement. “Now, with so much excitement around the player movement that took place this winter through free agency and trades, the WNBA’s broadcast and streaming partners in 2025 will spotlight the league’s superstars, rising stars and must-see matchups like never before.”
The Liberty, winners of last year’s championship. will have 32 nationally televised or streamed games. Last year’s league MVP A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces will appear on 33 national broadcasts.
The Aces will open their season on May 17 in New York against the Liberty. Clark, Aliyah Boston, Kelsey Mitchell and the Fever play Angel Reese, Kamilla Cardoso and the Chicago Sky in their season opener on May 17. Both games will air on ABC.
In addition to more broadcast windows, six of Indiana’s games have been moved from an opposing team’s normal home arena to ones with larger capacities.
Additionally, the Aces and Washington Mystics moved games against other teams to larger venues. Washington relocated games against Las Vegas and Chicago to EagleBank Arena in Virginia. The Aces also moved two games against the Sky and one against the Lynx to T-Mobile Arena.
The 2025 WNBA regular season begins with a tripleheader on ION on May 16.
How else will the broadcast schedule be different in 2025?
Ahead of a new broadcast deal worth $2.2 billion over 11 years coming into effect in 2026, the league’s network partners continue to air more games. Including its opening weekend doubleheader, ABC will have a record 13 broadcasts.
ION will air the most regular-season games (50) of any network, up from 43 a season ago, with Friday night doubleheaders highlighting their slate. CBS and CBS Sports network will broadcast 20 total games this season. Among its games, the network will air the league’s first WNBA regular-season, prime-time game on broadcast television, doing so when the Sky and Fever play on June 7 and Aug. 9.
NBA TV will broadcast 40 games, while Amazon Prime Video will air the Commissioner’s Cup championship in addition to 20 other contests. WNBA League Pass will stream more than 200 out-of-market games.
(Photo: Stephen Maturen / Getty Images)
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