Fans spoke, and the WNBA listened. After years of preseason games not being available for the public to watch unless you were there in person, the WNBA announced it will be streaming all 15 of this year’s preseason games.
This has been an issue amid the rising popularity of the WNBA. In 2023, when the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx came to Toronto to play a preseason game, it was only broadcast in Canada. Fans in the US could not even watch the game on the WNBA’s League Pass app.
Last season, when Caitlin Clark made her unofficial debut for the Indiana Fever in the preseason, the WNBA still was not making games available on television or streaming. Fans were in uproar about Clark’s first games not being streamed, especially since tickets for them sold out fast.
NBA preseason games are broadcast on television, and it’s a good way for fans to get familiar with the newer team members before the season officially starts. With fan favorites like Clark, Paige Bueckers, Angel Reese and more being welcomed into the league every year, the WNBA has been losing out on a chance to advertise itself. People don’t care if it’s preseason; they want to see these women play.
One fan even took it to the next level to prove as much last year, livestreaming a Minnesota Lynx vs. Chicago Sky game on X from their cellphone. The stream garnered a total of 2 million impressions and nearly 175,000 live viewers throughout the game, despite just being the fans’ view from the stands. People wanted to watch Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso in action, despite the games not counting towards their team’s record.
Plus, a stroll through the comments of the original stream tweet are entertaining to look through:
The league has now decided to meet that demand in 2025, announcing on Monday that all 15 preseason games will be available for fans to watch at home. WNBA League Pass will stream 14 of the 15, with the 15th being broadcast on ESPN. Ion and NBA TV will also have select preseason games available on their networks.
The Indiana Fever’s exhibition against Brazil’s National Team game on May 4 will be broadcast on ESPN, as Caitlin Clark makes her return to Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa. WNBA League Pass is also bringing back their promotion from last year, airing a few games for free on League Pass to start the season. All preseason games are included in this promotion.
