Fever-Liberty becomes most-watched WNBA game of 2026 season
Their clash in Brooklyn on June 6 garnered an average of 2.557 million viewers on CBS and ranks as the second most-watched WNBA game on any network since 2000.
The Indiana Fever continue to be the biggest television draw in women’s basketball.
The Fever-Liberty matchup on June 6 averaged 2.557 million viewers on CBS, making it the most-watched WNBA game on any network this season, according to Nielsen data released by CBS Sports.
The national broadcast also peaked at 3.022 million viewers.
CBS said the audience was up 33% compared to the same network window last season, when Indiana played Chicago on June 7, 2025.
The viewership milestone is significant beyond just this season. According to CBS Sports, the Fever’s visit to New York ranks as the second most-watched WNBA game on any network since 2000, including playoff games.
Since drafting Caitlin Clark with the No. 1 pick in 2024, the Fever have become one of the biggest draws in sports. The impact was immediate: The 2024 WNBA Draft drew roughly five times the audience of the previous year’s broadcast despite little suspense about who would be selected first overall.
That interest has carried into the regular season. And it’s now reflected in all 44 regular-season Fever games this season picked up by national networks — a first in league history.
The Liberty won the 2024 WNBA Championship and are headlined by Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, and Jonquel Jones. However, Ionescu did not play; she’s missed all but one game this season due to injury.
The Fever led by as many as 12 points, but were outscored 29-18 in the fourth quarter of a 83-75 loss. The Liberty attempted 40 free throws, including 23 in the final period, to the Fever’s 15 attempts. Stewart, alone, finished 18 of 21 at the line and led all scorers with 30 points.
It also had additional meaning because it was a Commissioner’s Cup game.
Television numbers have become a recurring storyline for the Fever since the 2024 season, regularly delivering an audience larger than one million — and helping drive league-wide visibility and sponsor interest.
The Fever are the it team. Since the 2025 season, they’ve leaned into sizable following with the slogan: “Every game is a home game.”
The latest audience figure underscores the Fever’s role as the league’s primary ratings engine. More than halfway through the season, no other WNBA game has attracted a larger television audience than Indiana’s nationally televised showdown with New York.