2005 WNBA thread [R]

[tcmahoney]

The season's started, and I know there are one or two people who like to discuss it. So, all things WNBA-related in terms of business and media go here.

[aleaguer]

Sue Bird is hot. Does that count?
























What?

[Thomas Flannigan]

I don't think it is viable long term under the current model. The league requires large subsidies and I am not sure how long those can continue. The salaries are pretty high for a league that hardly anyone wants to watch.

[Thomas A Fina]

As long as the NBA is willing to subsidize it, it will be fine.

I wish MLS had a sugar daddy like that.

One more reason to watch the NBA labor talks very very closely

[aleaguer]

I don't think it is viable long term under the current model. The league requires large subsidies and I am not sure how long those can continue. The salaries are pretty high for a league that hardly anyone wants to watch.

Plus, they shoot like girls and stuff.

And girls are icky, right?

[Khansingh]

For one thing, several clubs are owned independent of their NBA cohabitants. Second, its games are watched by as many as or more people than MLS. Third, MLS does have a sugar daddy.

[MasterShake29]

For one thing, several clubs are owned independent of their NBA cohabitants. Second, its games are watched by as many as or more people than MLS. Third, MLS does have a sugar daddy.

Actually, I think all of one (Connecticut) is, one or two more might be on the way. For a while the WNBA did not permit independent ownership.

[skipshady]

Actually, I think all of one (Connecticut) is, one or two more might be on the way. For a while the WNBA did not permit independent ownership.
Charlotte Sting were (are?) independent for between the time the Hornets left town and the Bobcats came along, weren't they? Wouldn't surprise me if they were drawing more than the Hornets in their final season.

[monster]

I don't think it is viable long term under the current model. The league requires large subsidies and I am not sure how long those can continue. The salaries are pretty high for a league that hardly anyone wants to watch.
http://www.regularguycolumn.com/cooties.jpg

[aleaguer]

Actually, I think all of one (Connecticut) is, one or two more might be on the way. For a while the WNBA did not permit independent ownership.

Washington was just sold.

I thought Phoenix was independent, but I'm not 100% sure.

[TOTC]

Phoenix is independent. And supposedly, so will Chicago when it is up and running in '07.

[riverplate]

I'm glad I found this thread, because I almost started an "Hey MLS, the WNBA wants to make a profit" thread, based upon my popular NBA Uniform Logos thread.

As its big brother fights off image problems, the WNBA is redrawing its game plan to become a profitable league of its own. The women's league just installed a new president and inked a string of sponsorship deals as it moves toward the goal of seeing black by 2007. It kicked off its summer season with new and expanded marketing pacts with McDonald's, Toyota, 1-800 Flowers, Got Milk? and Digene Corp.

"The WNBA is a valuable marketing platform to reach moms and daughters, and that's a rare property," said sports marketing expert Kevin Adler of Relay Marketing.

The addition of high-profile players is helping to increase WNBA attendance, up 10 percent during last year's playoffs, as well as merchandising revenue, which jumped 29 percent between the 2003 and 2004 seasons. Also fueling the league's surge is former college standouts taking their fan following with them from the campus to the professional courtside. For instance, former University of Connecticut star Diana Taurasi singled-handedly turned her Phoenix Mercury team into a top contender and marketing force last season.

"The public views the WNBA as a solid, successful new league and professional women's basketball is going to be a permanent fixture in our culture," said TV sports consultant Neal Pilson.

Ratings for WNBA games were up 11 percent on ESPN last season before the league went on hiatus during the Summer Olympics. WNBA games drew an average of 210,000 fans for 14 games telecast on ESPN, with a 50 percent jump in viewership among teenaged girls — a prime target for the league. Now entering its ninth season, the league is in the second year of a five-year revenue-sharing deal with ESPN and ABC, which will air the WNBA All-Star game in July.

New WNBA President Donna Orender said the WNBA expects to add more sponsors this season, with an emphasis on localized promotion deals to showcase their star personalities. As for the WNBA's own future plans, it will add a 14th team in Chicago next year.

WNBA driving toward profit (http://www.nypost.com/business/45039.htm)

I wonder how many times the WNBA has got it up the wazoo last year from ESPN when it came to the broadcasts of their games. Or is David Stern man enough not to take that crap from ESPN the way Garber and company seem to enjoy doing.

I also heard Stern recently interviewed on WFAN and he said all the teams are now on their own and single-entity or NBA sponsorship no longer exists.

[aleaguer]

Phoenix is independent. And supposedly, so will Chicago when it is up and running in '07.

Chicago plays in 2006, not 2007.

And I believe what Stern meant was that in the past, the WNBA was collectively owned by all the NBA teams - even those NBA organizations that didn't have WNBA teams had a stake in the WNBA. The other NBA teams (rightly so, perhaps) had enough of that (hell, some of the NBA teams that had WNBA teams had had enough of that, and now it's independent ownership (i.e. Charlotte owns Charlotte, but only Charlotte).

Profitable by 2007? Well, that's certainly a goal they should have. I don't know how it's going to happen, but go for it.

As for the ESPN bit, blah blah blah. Yeah, it's all about being a man, nothing else.

[Andy_B]

"The public views the WNBA as a solid, successful new league and professional women's basketball is going to be a permanent fixture in our culture," said TV sports consultant Neal Pilson.

ROTFLMAO



Andy

[monster]

ROTFLMAO



Andy
Neil has said nice things about MLS in the past so let's not laugh at him. :p

[Andy_B]

Here are the attendances for each game played so far in June

11601
7037
8380
7132
9620
8314
6744
6252
17317
10974
8651
8143
4253
7080
9564
7725
5841
7585
8405
7573
5736
7524
4263
9772
8461
8789
4551
6658

Andy

[okcomputer]

wow, they only broke 5 figures 3 times and I thought MLS had bad attendance. My friend works for the NBA and he was telling me the WNBA gives out loads of free tickets. That makes their attendance that much worse.

[Andy_B]

wow, they only broke 5 figures 3 times and I thought MLS had bad attendance. My friend works for the NBA and he was telling me the WNBA gives out loads of free tickets. That makes their attendance that much worse.

If MLS had as many week day games as the WNBA does, MLS attendance would look much closer to the WNBA's than it does now.

I won't talk to the free tickets since I have no real proof, but I do believe the WNBA gives away a significantly higher % of free tickets than MLS does.

Andy

[okcomputer]

If MLS had as many week day games as the WNBA does, MLS attendance would look much closer to the WNBA's than it does now.

I won't talk to the free tickets since I have no real proof, but I do believe the WNBA gives away a significantly higher % of free tickets than MLS does.

Andy

I always thought one of the WNBA's biggest problems is who wants to go sit inside an arena on a nice summer day? That seems like a tough sell. They would probably be better off playing in the winter.

[Andy_B]

I always thought one of the WNBA's biggest problems is who wants to go sit inside an arena on a nice summer day? That seems like a tough sell.

I am pretty sure the vast majority of their games are at night not during the day.


Andy