It doesn't matter when she plays, people just want to watch Caitlin Clark. The Indiana Fever phenom drew significant ratings during the team's WNBA preseason game against the Brazilian National Team on Sunday.
The contest drew 1.6 million peak viewers. That figure was 13 percent higher than the average regular-season WNBA game that aired on ESPN last season.
ESPN's presentation of Sunday’s preseason #WNBA matchup between the Indiana Fever and the Brazilian National Team averaged 1.3M viewers
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) May 6, 2025
🏀 Peak 1.6M
🏀 Up 13% from last year's reg. season avg. on ESPN pic.twitter.com/milgophfjV
WNBA Countdown saw an even larger increase in its audience before the contest. The program drew 571,000 viewers, up 71 percent compared to last year's average.
Clark didn't disappoint during the contest, which saw her return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena for the first time since she left Iowa. Clark dropped 16 points in the 108-44 victory, many of which came from way beyond the arc.
Caitlin Clark from DEEPER than her 22 logo on the floor at Carver-Hawkeye Arena 🤯 pic.twitter.com/WMy1xAVPcV
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) May 4, 2025
The game marked Clark's 2025 WNBA preseason debut. She sat out during the Fever's first preseason contest due to a leg injury.
While Clark proved to be healthy during the team's game vs. the Brazilian National Team, she also got plenty of time to rest her leg. With the Fever up big, Clark and a number of the team's starters sat out the fourth quarter.
All told, it was quite the return for Clark, and a great way for her to make her 2025 preseason debut. It was also a reminder of how much fans want to watch Clark dominate the competition.
It didn't matter that it was a preseason game, or that the Fever weren't playing another WNBA team. If Clark is involved, people will pay attention.
