The Surge in Popularity of Women's Basketball
Caitlin Clark has been a significant force in elevating women's basketball, but she wasn't the only contributor to its rise.
These days, attending or even watching a women's sports event often reveals fans proudly wearing black T-shirts with the slogan: "Everyone watches women’s sports."
This sentiment was particularly evident during last year's N.C.A.A. women's basketball tournament. For the first time since the women's championship began in 1982, the women's final attracted more viewers than the men's, with 18.9 million tuning in compared to 14.8 million for the men's game.
The women's final saw a significant increase in viewership from the previous year, which had nearly 10 million viewers. Meanwhile, the men's viewership continued to decline, reaching about half of what it was in 2015, according to Nielsen data.
The 2023 and 2024 finals prominently featured Caitlin Clark, whose time with the Iowa Hawkeyes played a crucial role in boosting the sport's popularity. However, the growth of women's basketball was already underway before her arrival.
Men's basketball had a considerable head start. The N.C.A.A. was established in 1906, but it wasn't until after the 1972 enactment of Title IX—a law mandating equal treatment in school sports—that women's sports leagues were fully integrated. During the first seventy years, men's sports received more investment and airtime, resulting in greater exposure.