Caitlin Clark not signing $1 million contract has Unrivaled league struggling for viewers
Unrivaled league tried to sign Indiana Fever and WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark to join their inaugural season.
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Unrivaled league is struggling to attract major no. of viewers without Caitlin Clark
After Caitlin Clark finished her debut WNBA season, questions popped up if she was heading to the new Unrivaled league. She kept quiet as negotiations continued, but eventually, she opted out. Now the league has moved forward, and their first few games have played out.
The league founded by Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier tried to get hold of the best players from the WNBA. That saw a plethora of top talent sign up with just 30 initial spots open. However, later on they added a few more players to take it to 36.
In the midst of all this, they apparently offered Caitlin Clark a massive $1 million salary-based deal. That along with equity, merchandise deals etc. should have been financially lucrative. However, she chose not to play as she wanted to rest this offseason.
Now that the first games have been played sans Clark, numbers trickled in on how many viewers they managed to attract. TNT Sports PR announced that the opening night games drew 312,000 viewers on an average.
Opening night of @Unrivaledwbb delivered strong 💪viewership and engagement across TNT Sports platforms:
— TNT Sports U.S. PR (@TNTSportsUS) January 21, 2025
🏀 Most watched WBB games on TNT Sports platforms ever
🏀 WBB viewership record for @SportsonMax
🏀 31m views of Unrivaled content across @BleacherReport platforms
More ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/HOXR6vFFhw
Both opening night games were exciting and helped in attracting those numbers. The games featured Angel Reese, Collier, Stewart and others. However, these numbers are a stark contrast to how the WNBA fared last season.
Unrivaled will need Caitlin Clark next season
During her debut WNBA season, ESPN saw an average of 1.19 million watch the league’s games. Front Office Sports reports that the numbers were more than double what the network saw in the year before Clark joined the Indiana Fever.
That received further proof when she was pushing the league’s viewership records in quite a few games. The fact that she managed to sell out opponent arenas gave the impression that the league was benefitting from her presence.
That is why it is crucial that Unrivaled go after Caitlin Clark once their debut season ends. They have to start pitching her the idea from the off, hoping that even if she takes time to decide, she eventually signs on the dotted line.
Next season will also possibly see Paige Bueckers and A’ja Wilson join. But even then, it may not be enough to attract millions of viewers unless the Indiana Fever star suits up. How the league fares in the remaining games will determine that. As with every league, they start strong, but the real test is in continuity.
If they cannot hold on to those 300K or so viewers, the price to land Caitlin Clark might go up. The league has to generate revenue to pay double the salaries of the WNBA as they want to. For that, they need the money-making machine that is the Fever guard.
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Joseph Varghese
(2353 Articles Published)