The WNBA Finals concluded on Sunday with the New York Liberty’s exciting overtime victory over the Minnesota Lynx in Game 5.
“28 years in the making! The New York Liberty are WNBA champions! The original franchise has its very first title!” – ESPN’s Ryan Ruocco on the call of the Liberty’s overtime victory over the Lynx in the decisive Game 5 of the WNBA Finals pic.twitter.com/MGytl4gt7Y
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 21, 2024
Following the series’ climactic game, Game 4 on Friday, which saw the Lynx’s last-minute triumph to push for a fifth and final game, set a 24-year viewership record. This marks the fourth significant achievement for the WNBA Finals in the past four games.
Game 4 on Friday averaged 1.67 million viewers on ESPN per Sports Media Watch, making it the most-watched WNBA Finals game since Game 2 of the 2000 Finals between the Liberty and the Houston Comets, which had an average of 2.12 million viewers on NBC. Viewership for Game 4 spiked by 88% compared to last year’s Game 4 between the Las Vegas Aces and the New York Liberty, which attracted 889,000 viewers.
In a broader context, despite being the most-watched Finals game in two decades, Game 4 only ranked as the 12th most-watched game of the season. It fell behind ten Indiana Fever games featuring standout guard Caitlin Clark and the WNBA All-Star game showcasing Clark.
The WNBA’s strong viewership this season played a significant role in the Women’s National Basketball Players Association’s decision to opt out of the current collective bargaining agreement with the league, as announced on Monday.
It is likely that Game 4’s viewership record will not last long, as the numbers for Game 5 of the WNBA Finals are anticipated to be released on Tuesday. Despite competing with NBC’s Sunday Night Football game between the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers, as well as Game 6 of the NLCS between the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers on FS1, it is expected that the WNBA will once again surpass its record when the Game 5 viewership is revealed.
[Sports Media Watch]
