Sell Out, Star-Studded Crowds ROCK WNBA Tip Off!

LOS ANGELES – Following the WNBA season opener games May 14-15, it was reported that five of the six games were played in front of sell-out crowds, a record for opening nights in the WNBA. 

The Connecticut Sun’s game against No. 1 overall pick Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever was played in front of 8,910 fans at Mohegan Sun Arena. This marked the first sold out game of the season for the Sun and was the first time since the Sun’s inaugural home opener at Mohegan that a home opener was sold out. In that game, the Sun played reigning back-to-back champions, the Los Angeles Sparks in front of a crowd of 9,341.

The Washington Mystics’ game against the New York liberty saw an attendance of 4,200. A packed crowd for the Entertainment & Sports Arena in D.C. The Mystics are no stranger to record attendance as they currently hold the league record for attendance with 20,674 fans in attendance for their 1999 game against the now defunct Cleveland Rockers. 

In the Las Vegas Aces home opener against the Phoenix Mercury, the Aces received their second consecutive WNBA championship ring in the ring ceremony. The Aces saw a crowd of 10,419 fans at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas. 

March 7, the Aces announced that they had sold out of their 8,600 season tickets for the 2024 season, making them the first team in WNBA history to do so. In the 2023-24 season, the Aces had an average attendance of 9,551 fans, putting them first in the WNBA for attendance and sold out nine of their home games.

The sellouts continued Wednesday night beginning with the Chicago Sky’s game against the Dallas Wings and ending with the Atlnata Dream’s game against the Los Angeles Sparks. 

The Wings saw opening night attendance of 6,251 people, selling out College Park center in Arlington, Texas. The Wings and the Sky generated lots of buzz around their matchup from the team’s respective draft picks. The Sky picked up Kamila Cardoso at three and Angel Reese at seven, while the Wings secured Jacy Sheldon. 

The Dream met the Sparks in Long Beach, California for their sold out matchup due to the ongoing renovations at Crypto.com Arena. The Walter Pyramid, home arena of Long Beach State University, was at capacity with 3,847 attendees including familiar faces such as Kim and Kardashian and North West. 

The sold out crowds across the country for the WNBA is further proof of the league gaining interest and growing their following. Aside from the home openers, many team’s expect to sell out of more games this season in the future.