The WNBA’s New Deal With ION By The Numbers

As I reported late Tuesday, the WNBA’s deal with Scripps-Howard to televise Friday night games on ION will run three years, from 2023-25, at $39 million total, for an average annual value of $13 million.

“The WNBA is thrilled to partner with Scripps to expand the league’s media horizon and reach basketball fans in greater numbers,” WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said when the deal was announced last week. “Access to watch WNBA games is in high demand, and Scripps’ dedicated Friday night lineup of WNBA games on ION will become much desired appointment viewing for WNBA fans.”

What the new deal does is critical — for a league whose primary television rights deal with ESPN runs through 2025, it provides an opportunity to infuse additional cash into league operations at a time the league is receiving what is clearly less than the current value of their television rights.

Why we know this now, in black and white, is that while ION is receiving 15 television windows, with a curreny potential max of around 25 games (since some Friday night schedules allow for two games), that still means that one night a week, regular season only, cost a television provider just under half of what ESPN’s current deal pays the league.

(Let’s just note here that the WNBA didn’t announce the ION schedule yet, and it would not be shocking to see game times change to maximize the value of the deal for both partners.)

By contrast, ESPN paid $27 million for WNBA television rights which included the All Star Game and all postseason games in 2021. That grows, but to just $33 million, by the final season in 2025.

For a more significant apples-to-apples comparison: Twitter, for ten streaming games in 2021 (though non-exclusive, they could also be televised locally), paid $250,000. The price points for WNBA content are rising dramatically.

For ION, the opportunity exists to treat the WNBA as a proving ground for live sports broadcasting, one of the few things in television that still beings in live viewers.

“The WNBA Friday Night Spotlight on ION brings women’s professional basketball the broadest possible reach with the consistency that fans, players, teams and the league deserve,” said Adam Symson, Scripps president and CEO. “Scripps is fully committed to serving and growing the number of American women’s basketball fans who value the athleticism, professionalism and excitement the WNBA brings into their living rooms.”

As for the viewers both sides can expect from the new deal, there is opportunity — the WNBA viewer skews younger, while ION can grow most in that area. And that bottom-line ratings number will matter for both of them: ION if it intends to be a power player in the sports media rights front, and the WNBA as it attempts to extract maximum value out of its upcoming media rights negotiations.