Sports
WNBA is entering a new era: Skyrocketing viewership, sold-out arenas, young stars
Sue Bird hopes that when she’s in her 50s and 60s, she can be like a former NBA player who currently throws out opinions on television. One model Bird sees for herself: Charles Barkley. She remembers multiple instances of hearing the Naismith Hall of Famer talk about his playing days on TNT’s “Inside the NBA.”
“He’s like, ‘Oh, I had to fly commercial. I didn’t have these charter flights.’ Or, ‘Oh, these guys are making $40 million. Like, my contract was only —I don’t know, $10 million.’ And he kind of sounds disgruntled,” Bird said on NPR’s Fresh Air last month.
She wants to one day be able to toss out back-in-my-day tales. “I’ve always joked, I hope I’m that disgruntled athlete because that means all the blood, sweat and tears was for something,” she said. “It means the game has grown.”
Bird retired after two decades in the WNBA following the 2022 season. She hasn’t been out of the league even two full years (Bird technically jumped back in this April when she joined the Storm’s ownership group), but the league she’ll watch this summer is already in a better place than it was when she retired.
Changes — both momentous and minute — are already aplenty as the 28th regular season begins Tuesday. For years, as Bird and recently retired Candace Parker graced the hardwood, the WNBA chipped away at areas of growth. But now the pace of the adjustments is explosive.
“To be very honest, the impact of the wave right now is more profound than I thought it was going to be,” Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel said. “It got to be a bigger wave a lot faster than what I think we projected it to be. And wow, I’ll say it feels amazing.”
“Expansions were always in the design. The moment has arrived where the investment matches, finally, us being able to put these ideas to fruition.”
—@chiney on the growth of the WNBA 📈 pic.twitter.com/Y6egBKMcgY
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) May 10, 2024
Television viewership numbers have skyrocketed across women’s basketball. April’s WNBA Draft averaged a record 2.47 million viewers, a 307 percent increase over last year, and it was the most-viewed WNBA telecast since 2000. The first preseason exhibition for Chicago Sky rookies Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso didn’t air on traditional television, but more than 500,000 viewers tuned in to a phone stream from a resourceful fan. It seems like a harbinger of what will come in the regular season, which tips off Tuesday.
“The growth is happening so fast,” said Cheryl Reeve, the Minnesota Lynx’s coach and president of basketball operations. “It’s so accelerated. And I’ve been saying this in our own organization, that business as usual isn’t going to work anymore.”
The early viewership returns reflect the strengthened link between the college and professional games. Cardoso and the South Carolina Gamecocks’ win over Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the 2024 national championship game averaged 18.9 million viewers, making it the most viewed women’s college basketball game ever and the most viewed basketball game (college or professional in men’s or women’s basketball) since 2019. The tournament was up 121 percent from 2023.
With a high-profile rookie class entering the league, WNBA attendance is swelling, too. No team had ever sold out its season ticket package in the offseason, but three teams (Las Vegas, Atlanta and Dallas) did this year. Three games have also been moved to bigger venues to accommodate more fans who want to see Clark play.
How players arrive at those contests will be changing as well. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced last week that the league plans to add charter flights on a full-time basis sometime this season. The news came as the league’s existing charter policy appeared increasingly untenable in the long term.
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WNBA will add charter flights on full-time basis this season
Clark and her Indiana Fever teammates traveled to Dallas for their first preseason game on a commercial airline and were greeted by a few fans and media members. They experienced no travel or security issues on their first road trip of the year, according to a team spokesperson. But one video clip showing Clark and center Aliyah Boston passing by a luggage carousel, with a member of the organization’s security team present, gained more than 2 million views. It served as a reminder of their current conditions.
Engelbert was uncommitted about when exactly a full-charter program would be implemented. She said the new travel program, which will cost about $25 million per year for the next two seasons, will launch “as soon as we can logistically get planes in places.” Still, the news of private travel was cause for celebration.
Lynx guard Kayla McBride called the change “a breath of fresh air.” Minnesota forward Napheesa Collier noted that with viewership increasing across women’s basketball, it was imperative to make the adjustment to protect player privacy.
“All these players in these spaces are becoming so popular that it really is about (safety) as much as it’s about recovery,” she said.
Even before Engelbert’s announcement, franchises around the league recognized the importance of increasing security. According to a person with knowledge of the Chicago Sky’s plans, after not traveling with security last season, the franchise will travel with security this season. Every WNBA team will travel with security personnel on its commercial flights, for as long as they remain the standard.
There has also been additional security around the Sky at practices, which take place at a public facility in suburban Chicago. Sachs Recreation Center wrote in an email, obtained by The Athletic, to its community members that beginning April 29, two police officers would be onsite during all Sky practices for the remainder of the season. Their presence is new this year and the change appears likely to have been driven by the Sky’s desire to bolster its player safety.
Fever general manager Lin Dunn said Indiana was taking similar precautions to ensure every member of her franchise would be safe when flying commercial. In addition to having a full security team at home games, the Fever will be traveling with multiple full-time security members, employed by Pacers Sports and Entertainment, on all road trips, the team spokesperson added. Multiple members of their security team will also be present at ancillary team events, like they were at Indiana’s promotional photo shoot in downtown Indianapolis last week.
Those changes are reflective of a new era in the WNBA. Breanna Stewart, the No. 1 pick in 2016, recalled taking photos and signing autographs at airports without a security detail present during her rookie season.
The travel adjustments demonstrate a commitment to improving player experiences. New facilities provide another significant boost. By season’s end, the Storm and Mercury will have opened new spaces. The Storm debuted their 50,000-square foot performance center in April, equipped with state-of-the-art strength and conditioning equipment, a health and wellness suite, and an aquatics room — all of it designed and engineered by a group that was 85 percent women and people of color. The Mercury’s will be part of one of the largest developments for a professional sports organization in the country, according to the franchise. It is expected to open by the time they host the mid-July All-Star Game.
Our new home 💚⛈️ pic.twitter.com/DHjRvHFEFR
— Seattle Storm (@seattlestorm) April 18, 2024
It should come as no surprise, then, that both added stars: Seattle signed 2016 league MVP Nneka Ogwumike and four-time first-team All-WNBA guard Skylar Diggins-Smith, while Phoenix bolstered its roster with 2021 Finals MVP Kahleah Copper and All-WNBA defensive team guard Natasha Cloud.
Having already become the first franchise to win consecutive titles in 21 years, the Las Vegas Aces will look to win a third straight this summer. Expect a standout season from their star, A’ja Wilson, who Nike announced on Saturday would be getting her own signature sneaker and clothing collection in 2025. Wilson is one of just over a dozen WNBA players ever to have a signature shoe and the first Black WNBA player to get a signature shoe since 2010.
All told, as Engelbert prepares to give the Aces their rings Tuesday night, she is glowing when thinking about the state of the WNBA. With league revenue having reportedly doubled since 2019, she said they have “huge investment” coming in through corporate and media partnerships. (The league’s existing media rights deal with ESPN ends after the 2025 season, and a new CBA could come into effect in 2026.) At April’s Draft, which was held in front of fans for the first time in eight years, feeling the positive momentum Engelbert said the WNBA was “ready for what’s next.”
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Expansion into new markets is part of what’s to come. A 13th franchise will begin play in the Bay Area in 2025, while a 14th team is reportedly set to launch in Toronto in 2026.
“We are witnessing a transformational moment in sports,” Engelbert said, “that we may not experience for generations.”
Bird, too, feels the added buzz. She said the sport has crossed a cultural cachet line. For that reason, it might not take Bird, 43, another seven years to become a semi-crotchety pundit. She might be able to tell stories about the old days before she even knows it.
(Photo of Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston and Temi Fagbenle: Gregory Shamus / Getty Images)
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Russell Wilson has had his share of ups and downs in his NFL career.
He helped the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl championship in 2013 and was named to the Pro Bowl four times. But the last few years of his career arguably did some damage to his legacy as he’s spent the last three seasons with three different teams.
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New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Oct. 9, 2025. (Brad Penner/Imagn Images)
Wilson is still on the free-agent market as he looks to latch on to a new team for 2026. However, former NFL star Aqib Talib implored Wilson to hang up the cleats.
“Do your TV thing, Russ. It’s over with, man. Once you’ve got to decide, do I even want to play?” Talib said on “The Arena: Gridiron.” “I think you don’t really want to play. I hate when guys get to the later part of their career and then they start doing the bounce-around thing and they’re not going to win. There was no chip in New York. That’s just going to be another stop on your resume.”
Wilson reportedly garnered some interest from NFL teams.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson stands on the field before a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, PA on Oct. 26, 2025. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)
He told the New York Post that the New York Jets were one of them.
Wilson also was reportedly a candidate to take Matt Ryan’s spot on CBS’ “The NFL Today” after Ryan left to take a front office job with the Atlanta Falcons.
Wilson has 46,966 passing yards and 353 passing touchdowns in 205 career games, but the 2025 season with the New York Giants was one to forget.
Wilson started three games and made some bizarre decisions in a loss against the Chiefs. Jaxson Dart was named the starting quarterback. As he came in to take a few snaps while Dart was being checked for a concussion, Wilson was booed.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson watches from the sidelines during the second half against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo., on Oct. 19, 2025. (Ron Chenoy/Imagn Images)
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Should he end up signing with another team, Wilson will be entering his age-38 season.
A lot has changed since Jacori Perry attended Morningside High School.
Perry is now a renowned artist who goes by the names Mr. Ace and AiseBorn.
The school is now known as Inglewood High School United.
And the lecture hall on that campus now features a large, ornate mural of a soccer ball being grasped by the hands of two people — freshly painted by the 2004 Morningside graduate as the city of Inglewood prepares to host eight World Cup games at SoFi Stadium starting next month.
Local artist Mr. Ace works on his mural at Inglewood High School United on May 11. The artists, whose real name is Jacori Perry, attended the school when it was known as Morningside High more than two decades ago.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
“If you told me that I would be back here painting one of the walls on this campus when I was in high school, I don’t think that I necessarily would have foreseen it,” Mr. Ace said as he was putting the finishing touches on his mural last week. “So I’m a little in amazement about just the way life works in that sense.”
He was one of several Los Angeles-based artists to participate in a Road to World Cup Community Day last month at Inglewood High United. Many of the artists — including Juan Pablo Reyes (“JP murals”), Michelle Ruby Guerrero (“Mr. B Baby”) and Angel Acordagoitia — sketched designs on portable panels (12-feet by 8-feet) and picnic tables for community members to paint.
The picnic tables will remain at the high school in front of Mr. Ace’s mural. The mobile murals will be placed throughout LAX to welcome visitors arriving for the World Cup.
Kathryn Schloessman, CEO of the Los Angeles World Cup 2026 Host Committee, said in a news release that the event was “just one example of how the energy of the World Cup can be felt in neighborhoods across our region.”
“Students, artists, and volunteers came together to create a work of art that will live on well beyond the end of the tournament,” Schloessman said. “It’s a reflection of the creativity, diversity, and community pride that makes our region so special as we prepare to host the world for FIFA World Cup 2026.”
Community members were encouraged to take part in the painting process, no matter their skill level.
“We made it easy enough for people that have zero experience to a proficient level of experience, for them to all be involved,” said Reyes, who designed and helped paint two mural panels and three tables. “We did the sketch, and then I tried to dab a little bit of color — whatever color is supposed to be there, I dabbed a little bit of color right there, so they would have a guide. …
Students and community members help paint a mural panel during a Road to World Cup Community Day event May 2 at Inglewood High School.
(Dawn M. Burkes / Los Angeles Times)
“I was right there, kind of supervising, making sure that everything went as planned. And if anybody has questions, they’re more than welcome to let me know about them. But, yeah, it’s pretty easy for them to kind of be involved and feel that sense of ownership and have a sense of pride that, ‘Yeah, I was part of that mural-creation process.’ It’s a rich experience for them.”
Acordagoitia sketched several table-top designs for the public to paint at the event.
“They did great,” he said of the community members. “They helped a lot. They were asking questions. They got all the other colors correct. So, yeah, they were excited. A lot of kids were excited to see the live painting, because now kids are used to being on their phones. So that was a great experience for them.”
Acordagoitia also opted to paint a mural panel on his own because “it was a little more technical,” involving portraits of his 8-year-old son, a nephew and a friend.
“I wanted to focus more on the youth because that’s really our future,” he said. “So that’s, that’s the main thing about the mural, just about the kids, soccer, culture, community. It’s exciting for me, because I grew up playing soccer and to include soccer with art, it’s just a dream come true.”
Guerrero said “the community was a big help in filling in all the background colors that I need in order to build the detail and layers” on the two mural panels she designed.
“My whole style is based on culture. And I think that there’s a connection there with the World Cup and how I feel like it brings together all the culture and just, like, celebration,” Guerrero said. “It kind of goes hand in hand with the type of work I do, because my stuff is really festive, celebrating culture. And just as an L.A.-based artist, I think the collaboration made sense.”
The four artists also took part in another Road to World Cup Community Day in downtown L.A. at Gloria Molina Grand Park on March 14. At that event, the artists sketched designs on large sculptures shaped like soccer balls and an oversized picnic table, also for community members to paint.
While Mr. Ace opted to paint his permanent mural at Inglewood High School United on his own, he was sure to include the community theme into his work.
“The idea was really centered around just creating something that was community-based — something that represented the World Cup but also represented some sense of community,” he said. “And so what I did was try to create something that was symbolic, very direct in terms of its relationship to soccer and figuring out through that how to create something simple that [brings] into that a sense of community. And that’s how I landed on the two hands holding the soccer ball.”
Local artist Mr. Ace works on his World Cup-themed mural at Inglewood High School United on May 11.
(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)
Back when he was a student on that campus, Mr. Ace said he was always involved in art and knew he wanted a career as an artist. He struggled to come up with the right words to describe how it felt being back there creating a work of art to be shared with the students, all of the community and everyone who happens to see it on the way to a World Cup match.
“I guess there’s no words to really describe it,” he said. “I think if any artist gets the opportunity to paint at their own high school — especially if they’ve been doing large-scale works around the city, the country or the world — I think that is a little touching. When it’s attached to something like the World Cup … you know, a large part of my childhood was spent in Inglewood, so coming from my circumstances and life, I think it’s even more intriguing.”
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The best Indianapolis 500 finish could be subjective, depending on which driver a fan was rooting for to win.
It certainly is in the eye of the beholder.
So take this list for what it’s worth. One view of the 10 best finishes in Indianapolis 500 history. Of course, it skews to more recent decades when the runs have come a little faster and the finishes have had a tendency to be a little closer.
We’ll add one each day to this list of fantastic finishes ahead of the 110th running of the Indy 500 on May 24 (12:30 p.m. ET on FOX).
10. Ericsson outduels O’Ward (2022)
After a red flag, Marcus Ericsson held off Pato O’Ward in a two-lap shootout. The shootout didn’t last two laps, though, as there was a crash on the final lap behind them. Ericsson had a comfortable lead when the red flag came out for a crash with four laps to go, a situation where in past Indianapolis 500 races, they likely would have ended the race under caution with Ericsson as the winner.
9. Foyt survives chaos (1967)
How does a driver who wins by two laps end up on this list? It’s because the win nearly didn’t happen on the last lap. A big crash with cars and debris littering the frontstretch just ahead of Foyt as he came to the checkered flag forced him to navigate through the wreckage for the win.
8. Sato can’t catch Franchitti (2012)
This was one of those finishes where the leader holds on for the win, but boy did the leader have to hold on. Takuma Sato tried to pass Dario Franchitti early on the final lap but to no avail and Franchitti sped off for the victory. This was one of those Indy 500s that made you hold your breath all the way to the checkered flag.
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Artists, community come together to welcome World Cup to Inglewood with murals and more
