US EditionWNBA Fans React To Friday's Caitlin Clark Injury Announcement
- On August 30, 2024, a new multi-year media rights deal was unveiled, extending the broadcast of Friday night WNBA games on Ion and introducing the dedicated weekly studio program, 'WNBA on Ion.'
- This agreement followed a significant decline in WNBA ratings after star player Caitlin Clark suffered a left quad injury on May 24, 2024, causing her to miss at least six Fever games.
- Caitlin Clark’s absence contributed to a 53-55% drop in nationally televised Fever game viewership, with average viewers falling from about 1.8 million to under 850,000 and the team’s record declining to 4-5.
- Cathy Engelbert, commissioner of the WNBA, noted that the collaboration with Scripps has significantly boosted the league’s exposure, while Scripps CEO Adam Symson highlighted Ion as the leading Friday night destination for WNBA games, reaching an audience of over 128 million households.
- The deal reflects growing demand for WNBA games despite rating drops during Clark’s injury, suggesting the league expects long-term growth as she recovers and returns to play.
18 Articles
18 Articles
Surge in viewers leads ION TV to extend current 3-year broadcasting deal with WNBA
Caitlin Clark’s arrival and a major surge in viewers over the past year led to ION Television reaching a multiyear agreement to extend its broadcasting partnership with the WNBA. ION, which is owned by the Cincinnati, Ohio-based, E.W. Scripps Company,…
White Says Team Needs More Mental Toughness – WRBI Radio
The Indiana Fever need more mental toughness. That’s the assessment of Fever head coach Stephanie White. She says even though the team has not gotten many favorable foul calls in their first nine games of the season, she says the team needs to learn to fight through it. There is still no word on when Caitlin Clark might return to the line-up from her injured quad. She has been practicing on a limited basis. Indiana will face the New York Liberty…
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