South Carolina’s victory over Caitlin Clark and Iowa in Sunday’s women’s NCAA championship game had a preliminary audience average of 18.7 million on ABC and ESPN. The only sporting events in the United States to draw a bigger TV audience since 2019 have been football, the World Cup and the Olympics.
Quick Read
- Historic Viewership: South Carolina’s win over Iowa in the women’s NCAA championship attracted a preliminary average audience of 18.7 million across ABC and ESPN, marking a significant milestone in sports broadcasting.
- Comparative Popularity: This viewership level positions the game among the most-watched U.S. sports events since 2019, only surpassed by football, the World Cup, and the Olympics.
- Anticipated Increase: Final audience numbers from Nielsen, expected to show a peak at 24 million, may further elevate the game’s historical significance in terms of viewership.
- Record-Breaking Potential: The game is on track to become the most-watched basketball game since the 2019 men’s NCAA title game, and possibly the first women’s title game to outdraw the men’s final in viewership.
- Cable Broadcast Records: It challenges records for college basketball viewership on cable, historically dominated by men’s games, with the 2015 Wisconsin vs. Kentucky game holding the top spot.
- Women’s Basketball Milestone: Caitlin Clark and Iowa have consistently drawn large audiences, with their recent games setting records for women’s college basketball viewership.
- Audience Growth: The viewership for the championship game significantly increased from previous years, reflecting growing interest in women’s basketball.
- Comparison with NBA: The game’s audience size is comparable to significant NBA Finals games, underscoring its remarkable reach and impact.
- Broader Context: The game also stood out as the most-watched Sunday afternoon sporting event on ESPN and ABC since an NFL playoff game in 2021, highlighting its unique appeal in a competitive sports broadcasting landscape.
The Associated Press has the story:
18.7 million: NCAA women’s title game make it most-watched hoops game in 5 years
Newslooks- BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) —
South Carolina’s victory over Caitlin Clark and Iowa in Sunday’s women’s NCAA championship game had a preliminary audience average of 18.7 million on ABC and ESPN. The only sporting events in the United States to draw a bigger TV audience since 2019 have been football, the World Cup and the Olympics.
The audience numbers are expected to increase when Nielsen releases its final numbers on Tuesday. Nielsen says the audience peaked at 24 million.
It’s the most-watched basketball game since 2019, when the men’s NCAA title game between Virginia and Texas Tech averaged 19.6 million on CBS.
Monday night’s men’s final between UConn and Purdue was being shown on TBS and TNT. It’s possible that this will be the first year the women’s title game has a bigger audience.
The 2015 Final Four game between Wisconsin and Kentucky on TBS is the only college basketball game on cable to draw over 18.7 million. That game averaged 22.63 million.
The 2022 men’s final, which matched Kansas and North Carolina on TBS, averaged 18.1 million.
Clark and Iowa have the three biggest audiences for women’s college basketball. The Hawkeyes’ victory over UConn Friday night averaged 14.2 million, and their April 1 victory over LSU in the Elite Eight, a rematch of last year’s title game, drew 12.3 million.
Clark noted the audience total on X, posting “18. 7 MILLION” with a fire emoji.
The audience for the national title game was up 89% over last year, when Clark and Iowa fell to LSU. And it was 285% bigger than the viewership for the Gamecocks’ title two years ago, when they beat UConn.
The last NBA game to draw at least 18 million was Game 6 of the 2019 Finals between the Toronto Raptors and Golden State Warriors (18.34 million).
The women’s final also had the biggest audience for a Sunday afternoon sporting event on ESPN and ABC since Jan. 10, 2021, when an NFL playoff game between the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans averaged 24.82 million. (ESPN and ABC don’t have the rights to Sunday afternoon NFL games throughout the season, which routinely draw audiences exceeding 25 million on CBS and Fox.)
