It was one of the better All-Star games in league history, but the WNBA’s midseason showcase struggled to find an audience.
The WNBA All-Star Game earned a 0.4 final rating and 606,000 viewers on ABC Saturday afternoon, down 20% in ratings and 19% in viewership from 2015, when coverage aired on both ESPN and ABC (0.55, 746K), but up a tick and 28% respectively from 2014, when the game aired on ESPN alone (0.3, 475K). There was no game last year due to the Olympics.
It was the fourth-least watched WNBA All-Star Game ever (14 games dating back to 1999), ahead of only 2014 (475K), 2006 (501K) and 2009 (475K). Keep in mind that does not include the WNBA vs. USA Basketball exhibitions in Olympic years.
Despite the lower numbers, Saturday’s telecast delivered the largest WNBA audience on any network since the 2015 All-Star Game — topping every game of the past two WNBA Finals, both of which went the full five games.
[Numbers from ShowBuzz Daily 7.25, ESPN]
