2024 shows spectacular growth in attendance as fans flock to NWSL & WNBA games

Both the women's soccer league (NWSL) and basketball league (WNBA) have shown dramatic increases in the number of game fans since pre-Covid-19 pandemic statistics.

The Covid-19 pandemic has become a turning point for monitoring human behavior and this is especially true when it comes to attendance at live sporting events around the world.

In the United States, all professional sports leagues have seen significant growth in attendance since 2019, with three leagues in particular seeing their numbers skyrocket. Two of those leagues are women's sports: the NWSL and the WNBA.

Tree for women's sports

The USWNT led by Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan won the 2019 World Cup in France, where interest in the women's game blossomed as the team's 'Equal Pay' movement also saw many support the players as they raised their voices on look for pay and conditions comparable to their male counterparts.

Morgan and Rapinoe became a major inspiration to many and this helped show a greater interest in women's football as more fans began attending matches across the country. From 2019 to 2024, the NWSL's average attendance has grown from an average of 7,337 per match to 11,235 per match, which represents an average growth of 53% according to a Sportico study.

The Caitlin Clark Effect

The importance of high profile female stars is fundamental to generating greater awareness for a sport, and basketball has seen how one player can cause a domino effect.

Attendance per game in the WNBA was approximately 6,528 in 2019 and has grown by 50% by 2024 with an average attendance of 9,807 spectators. Caitlin Clark's arrival at the Indiana Fever earlier in 2024 accelerated these numbers, which were trending positively before the former Iowa State player joined the WNBA. The league had its highest total attendance in 22 years (2,353,735), an increase of 48% on last season.

MLS is also showing significant growth

In men's sports, soccer has undergone an interesting transformation in the United States and has become more popular than ever as the country prepares to co-host the 2026 World Cup with Canada and Mexico.

The MLS has seen this audience growth increase as players like Messi, Suarez, Giroud, Reus and Lloris join MLS teams. In the Sportico study, MLS ranks third among U.S. professional leagues with the largest increase in matchday attendance. +8%, from an average of 21,330 in 2019 to 23,235 in 2024.

MLB and NFL are next on the list, both seeing a 4.4% increase since 2109, followed by the NBA with a 2.6% growth and finally the NHL with an increase of just 0.3%.