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WNBA Attendance Up Slightly In '14; Mercury Lead All Teams For First Time Since '97

WNBA teams averaged 7,578 fans per game in '14, marking the second straight season of increased attendance. The figure this past season was still below the period of '07-11, and well below the league highs seen in the late '90s. The Mercury led all clubs for the first time since the league's inaugural season in '97. Games at U.S. Airways Center drew 9,557 fans per game, up 12% from last season. The Liberty -- who returned to MSG this year after three seasons playing at Prudential Center due to construction -- saw a league-high 25% gain in attendance. On the other coast, the Sparks saw a league-worst 16% decline at the gate. The team's average attendance of 8,288 fans per game was its lowest since the '00 season (THE DAILY).

WNBA AVERAGE ATTENDANCE TREND
YEAR
AVERAGE
YEAR
AVERAGE
'14
7,578
'05
8,173
'13
7,531
'04
8,593
'12
7,457
'03
8,826
'11
7,955
'02
9,344
'10
7,834
'01
9,075
'09
8,039
'00
9,072
'08
7,952
'99
10,189
'07
7,742
'98
10,864
'06
7,479
'97
9,662
'14 WNBA REGULAR-SEASON ATTENDANCE
HOME TEAM
GAMES
TOTAL
AVG.
% CAP.
PREV.
% +/-
GAMES ('13)
Mercury
17
162,464
9,557
93.7%
8,557
11.7%
17
Lynx
17
158,656
9,333
101.7%
9,381
-0.5%
17
Liberty
17
152,128
8,949
88.4%
7,189
24.5%
17
Mystics
17
142,413
8,377
113.3%
7,838
6.9%
17
Sparks
17
140,901
8,288
63.0%
9,869
-16.0%
17
Fever
17
134,306
7,900
85.8%
8,164
-3.2%
17
Stars
17
131,226
7,719
78.1%
7,914
-2.5%
17
Storm
17
114,181
6,717
69.3%
6,981
-3.8%
17
Sky
17
113,640
6,685
90.8%
6,601
1.3%
17
Sun
17
101,662
5,980
64.1%
6,548
-8.7%
17
Dream
17
99,687
5,864
58.3%
5,853
0.2%
17
Shock
17
94,626
5,566
76.8%
5,474
1.7%
17
WNBA TOTALS
204
1,545,890
7,578
80.6%
7,531
0.6%
204

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