On June 21, 1997, two WNBA teams took the court at the Forum in Los Angeles. That day, the L.A. Sparks and the New York Liberty would face off in the inaugural game of the WNBA, launching a league that has provided entertainment, encouraged young girls to participate in sports, and taken a stand against a number of social issues.
In 1997, the NBA created the WNBA, the women’s counterpart to the NBA league. Eight teams were created, all owned by the NBA, in cities that already hosted NBA teams. These eight teams included the Charlotte Sting, the Cleveland Rockers, the Houston Comets, the New York Liberty, the Los Angeles Sparks, the Phoenix Mercury, the Sacramento Monarchs, and the Utah Starzz. The first game of the league brought together the teams from the two largest cities: New York and L.A. Approximately 15,000 people gathered at the Forum on June 21, 1997 to see the two teams face off.
By 2002, the NBA allowed for the franchising of team ownership. Today, the WNBA has 12 teams in two conferences across the country. Today, the average WNBA game draws about 1.2 million viewers. However, despite the continually rising popularity of women’s basketball, it is estimated that women’s sports overall only receives about 15% of airtime on major networks. As recently as last year, ESPN did not place the NCAA Women’s Championship in a primetime slot. The WNBA also receives just a tiny sliver of the marketing power given to the NBA. The WNBA has also highlighted the gender pay gap. In 2024, the WNBA’s number one draft pick, Caitlin Clark, who plays for Indiana Fever, was given a contract for approximately $338,000 over four years. The NBA number one draft pick was given a contract for $55.2 million over four years.
Learn more here:
- https://www.wnba.com/news/tip-off-2024-success-breakdown
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Teresa-Edwards
- https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/16256278/inside-wnba-inaugural-game-25-seasons-later
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/lindseyedarvin/2023/10/31/media-coverage-for-womens-sports-has-nearly-tripled-in-five-years-according-to-new-research/
- https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/features/a45725543/how-the-wnbas-unrelenting-activism-changed-womens-basketball/
