Image Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

WNBA All-Star Weekend Delivers Historic Numbers, Viewership Hits 2.2M As Clark’s Absence Doesn’t Stop the Ratings Juggernaut

Despite Caitlin Clark’s absence, the WNBA All-Star weekend shattered viewership records

Image Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

The WNBA All-Star weekend emerged as one of the league’s most successful events in recent memory. Record number of audiences tuned to watch the exhibition contests and the Team Clark vs. Team Collier fixture.

The three point contest which was played between multiple top beyond the arc scorers drew an average of 1.3 million viewers. The viewership for the competition peaked when Sabrina Ionescu captured her second Three-Point Contest title in front of a national television audience.

She delivered a brilliant performance, consistently knocking down threes from all areas of the perimeter. Ionescu went on to beat Allisha Gray, Sonia Citron, and Lexie Hull and scored 30 points. She was just short of her historic 37 points during the 2023 WNBA All-Star Weekend.

LIGHTS OUT ⭐

SABRINA IONESCU did not disappoint as she wins the WNBA Starry 3-point contest 🏀 #WNBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/C99sQpCg6J
— ESPN (@espn) July 19, 2025

The WNBA skills contest also had an average of 1.3 million viewership on the ESPN network. Natasha Cloud won the contest which marked the sweep of the New York Liberty players winning it all.

Ratings Climb Despite Clark’s Absence

The all-star contests like three point challenge and WNBA skills contest were just the trailers for what was to come on Saturday. The WNBA All-star Game between Team Clark and Team Collier broke records by registering massive viewership.

2.2 million average viewership was recorded on ESPN, ABC and Disney+ for the game. This happens to be the second most watched all-star game in the history of the league. This year’s fixture also saw a 153% spike in live audience in comparison to the 2023 games.

ESPN, ABC & @DisneyPlus scored historic viewership for the '25 #WNBAAllStar Weekend 👏

Skills Challenge & 3-Point Contest
🏀 1.3M avg. viewers

WNBA All-Star Game
🏀 2.2M avg. viewers pic.twitter.com/D4nr20k5Pe
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) July 22, 2025

Only the 2024 edition of the WNBA All-Star Game recorded higher viewership than this past weekend’s fixture. This came despite Caitlin Clark being sidelined due to a groin injury, which kept her out of the fixture. Had Clark been leading her side, it was likely that the viewership records would have further crossed the threshold.

This year’s exhibition games gained more traction due to the pre-game protests. Players wore shirts with a message: “Pay us what you owe us,” grabbing national attention.