With three weeks left in the WNBA season and an attendance record already assured, the league is eyeing a total attendance of nearly 3 million fans, according to an SBJ analysis of official league data.
Through Tuesday night, the 13 clubs had drawn a combined 2.49 million fans, topping the 2002 full-season record of 2.36 million.
Additionally, the WNBA’s average of 11,009 per game through last night is up 12.2% over last year’s full-season record average of 9,807, putting the league on pace to draw 2.86 million with 60 games remaining.
But several big remaining dates could push that number even higher.
The Valkyries, who have sold out all 17 games at the 18,064-seat Chase Center, have five home dates remaining. The Fever and Liberty, both of whom are averaging more than 16,400 per game, each have four home games left.
Additionally, two other games have been moved from smaller home arenas to larger venues to accommodate larger anticipated crowds. The Mystics will host the Fever next month at CFG Arena, where a visit in May drew 11,183; the Mystics’ usual home court, CareFirst Arena, holds 4,200 fans. The Lynx-Aces match will be played at the T-Mobile Center instead of the Aces’ 10,000-seat Michelob Ultra Arena. The Aces drew 18,547 at T-Mobile Center earlier this season when the Fever came to The Strip.
Those 15 games alone will likely draw 252,000.
For context, only the Fever and Liberty drew that many fans in the entire 2024 season.
