WNBA Turnstile Tracker: Attendance Down At End Of Regular Season
The WNBA regular season concluded on Sunday with teams averaging 6,535 fans per home game, down 3.5% from last season. Contributing to the WNBA's decline were three teams that experienced double-digit percentage drops. The Washington Mystics (-25.9%) had a league-worst percentage change during their first season at the 4,200-seat Entertainment & Sports Arena. The team previously played at Capital One Arena, which seats over 20,000. The N.Y. Liberty (-20.7%), after having the lowest attendance in the league in '18, once again find themselves at the bottom, averaging just 2,239 fans per home game during their second season at the Westchester County Center in White Plains (2,181 capacity). The Las Vegas Aces (-12.0%) averaged 4,669 fans per home contest in their second year in the league. Meanwhile, half the league experienced jumps in attendance, including the L.A. Sparks (+6.3%) -- who led all teams this season in average attendance for the second straight year -- the Connecticut Sun (+4.2%) and the Chicago Sky (+7.5%), who experienced the largest increase year over year. The league overall for the season had 41 sellouts, even with last year. The WNBA has now crossed 1.3 million fans in total attendance every year since '10.
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2019 WNBA REGULAR SEASON ATTENDANCE
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HOME TEAM
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DATES ('19)
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TOTAL
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AVG.
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% CAP.
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PREVIOUS
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CHANGE
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DATES ('18)
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L.A. Sparks
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17
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192,224
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11,307
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83.76%
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10,642
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6.3%
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17
|
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Phoenix Mercury
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17
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173,273
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10,193
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105.85%
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9,950
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2.4%
|
17
|
|
Minnesota Lynx
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17
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154,170
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9,069
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103.42%
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10,036
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-9.6%
|
17
|
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Seattle Storm ***
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17
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128,548
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7,562
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79.11%
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8,109
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-6.7%
|
17
|
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Connecticut Sun
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17
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116,300
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6,841
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73.38%
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6,569
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4.2%
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17
|
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Chicago Sky
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17
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116,188
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6,835
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74.78%
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6,358
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7.5%
|
17
|
|
Indiana Fever
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17
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100,078
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5,887
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74.88%
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6,311
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-6.7%
|
17
|
|
Dallas Wings
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17
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84,988
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4,999
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73.52%
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4,752
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5.2%
|
17
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Las Vegas Aces *
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17
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79,373
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4,669
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63.10%
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5,307
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-12.0%
|
17
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Washington Mystics ****
|
17
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77,288
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4,546
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103.6%
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6,136
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-25.9%
|
16
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Atlanta Dream
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17
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72,596
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4,270
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60.2%
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4,194
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1.8%
|
17
|
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N.Y. Liberty **
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17
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38,067
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2,239
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89.79%
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2,823
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-20.7%
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17
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LEAGUE TOTALS
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204
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1,333,093
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6,535
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81.7%
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6,769
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-3.5%
|
203
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* = Includes one game played at T-Mobile Arena. ** = Includes one game played at Barclays Center. *** = Includes five games played at Angel of the Winds Arena and the rest at Alaska Airlines Arena. **** = Includes one game played at Capital One Arena The team also only played 16 games last year.
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LIKE A BAD DREAM? One thing to keep an eye on in '20 will be attendance for the Atlanta Dream, as team ownership yesterday confirmed to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the club no longer will share State Farm Arena with the Hawks. The Dream returned to State Farm Arena this season after a two-year absence caused by renovations to the venue. The team wanted to stay at State Farm Arena but there has been "no deal worked out with the Hawks." Ownership stated that a decision about the team's home in '20 "remains weeks away."