Caitlin Clark brought new excitement and energy to women’s basketball, bringing in new fans and viewers to the sport. Clark’s talent spotlighted both herself and her team. New and old women’s basketball fans continue to show their support after Clark left to play in the WNBA.
Viewers were in awe of Clark’s long-range shots and high basketball IQ. Clark’s talent broke records for viewership consistently, and she broke records on the court, notably being the highest scorer in NCAA college basketball history.
Seeing Clark play has influenced basketball teams like coach Jennifer Goetz’s and excited younger generations to play the sport. “It has given such a positive vibe on women’s sports and basketball. It has grown the game and young girls are beyond excited about basketball. It makes my heart happy,” said Goetz.
Most remarkably, at the 2024 March Madness Tournament, the women’s basketball championship garnered 19 million viewers. This was four million more viewers than the men’s championship game and 7 million more than the average viewership per game at the NBA finals.
Clark brought her fanbase with her to the WNBA, where the “Caitlin Clark effect” has continued to bring in higher viewership and attendance numbers. After being drafted to the Fever, attendance at games doubled from 8,552 to 16,084 fans on average.
This impact was especially noticeable when Clark traveled to away games and attendance numbers skyrocketed at other stadiums. The Atlanta Dream saw a 431% increase in attendance from 3,316 fans to 17,592 fans when they played the Fever.
This impact goes beyond the college and professional levels. Star basketball player Quinn Vice noted the change in attendance at the high school girls basketball games. “I have seen a change in how much coverage our games get and how many people come. Also, many people ask about our games at school now too,” Vice said.
As the Hawkeyes enter their first season in four years without their star player, many question if they will be able to maintain the play level or momentum from this past year. Despite Clark’s absence, the Iowa Women’s Basketball program sold out all season tickets for the second year in a row and the second year in program history.
Basketball coach Jennifer Goetz believes in keeping the support for women’s basketball strong as Iowa’s younger team develops. “Anytime more eyes can be on women’s sports the more it is going to help! Women’s sports don’t get the same coverage as men’s sports, but recently it has amplified due to Caitlin Clark which will only grow women’s sports,” said Goetz
The Iowa team, placing second nationally last year, fell short of the ESPN top 25 women’s college basketball teams for the preseason. The Iowa team received several highly ranked freshman recruits and a highly ranked senior guard transfer from Villanova, Lucy Olsen, heading into this season.
It is still very early in the season and this team has a lot of new pieces to work together: a new coach, freshman and a senior transfer. It may be too early to tell the future of this team, but fans should be hopeful entering into a post-Clark season.
