Why Is WNBA Set to Suffer $50 Million Loss Despite Caitlin Clark and Other Rookies Record-Breaking Arrival?

The WNBA sure seems to grow this year. With the emergence of Caitlin Clark and other rookies, the WNBA has definitely seen an increase in revenue. For the record, the game between the New York Liberty and the Indiana Fever saw a record $2 million in revenue from its ticket sales. Furthermore, the merchandise sales have gone up by 756% as per the Front Office. But that doesn’t look to be enough to help the WNBA cover its total spending.

The WNBA with the inclusion of popular NCAA players has also improved its operations. This is one of the many reasons that the WNBA will have to spend more this year, which might account for the $50 million loss of the league this season.

Why will the WNBA suffer a $50 million loss?

With stars such as Clark, Angel Reese, and Cameron Brink among many others finding a place in the WNBA, the league decided to invest around $50 million in the next two years in charter flights. Previously, the players traveled by commercial planes but that changed this season. With a motive to improve player safety and protect them from long queues, the decision was taken. But unfortunately, the revenue WNBA earns is not sufficient to cover the losses.

As per the Washington Post (h/t: Front Office Sports), the WNBA will lose roughly $50 million this year with its 12 teams combined. The NBA has been supportive of the W for all these years, but the relation with the male counterpart league could be one of the possible reasons for the loss. In 2018, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stated that the NBA loses around $10 million on the WNBA annually, but the NBA also collects revenue from the league.

As per the same report, the NBA gets 40% of the WNBA’s revenue while outside investors get around 20%. This leaves the league with only 40% earnings. Furthermore, the players are also at a loss since unlike the NBA, they don’t share the revenue – they only make around 10% of it. But then why does the WNBA maintain its relationship with the NBA?

What’s in it for the WNBA that it sticks to the NBA?

The NBA apart from investing in the WNBA has also been a source of better negotiations. Recently, the NBA negotiated the media rights for itself and the W. As per the Post (h/t: Front Office Sports), the revenue could increase from $60 million annually to almost $200 million. This will majorly help the WNBA get over the losses it has made all these years.

According to the WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, better times lie ahead since the NBA and the WNBA are the only leagues that can give content throughout the year. Hence, they can keep the fans engaged. “If we’re only there for 4½ months…how attractive is that? But we and the NBA are maybe the only sports properties that can give 330 days of live programming—almost the entire year. That’s hugely valuable to a subscription platform.”

As per Bloomberg (h/t: Front Office Sports), the WNBA revenue was projected to touch the $180 million to $200 million mark last year which was considerably higher than its $102 million tally in 2019. Therefore, times are surely changing, and hopefully with the NBA’s help the WNBA will crack more beneficial deals and in the coming years make a surplus of what it spends. Plus, with the emergence of stars, perhaps the league grow more popular in the coming times.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the Reese-Clark rivalry and more, watch this video.