It’s no longer noteworthy simply because she delivers another massive television audience.Now, major networks are simultaneously claiming that they carried the most-watched WNBA game of the season.
Of course, both games included Clark and the Indiana Fever.CAITLIN CLARK DECLINES WNBA 3-POINT CONTEST INVITATION, DEALING MAJOR BLOW TO ALL-STAR WEEKEND AND ESPNCBS Sports announced Tuesday that the July 18 game between the Indiana Fever and New York Liberty averaged 2.579 million viewers and peaked at just over 3 million.Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever produced two WNBA audiences exceeding 2.5 million viewers in six days, with CBS and NBC both claiming the most-watched game of the 2026 season.(Andy Lyons / Getty Images)Caitlin Clark helps WNBA hit historic late-night cable number despite limited return in LAThe network called it the most-watched WNBA game on any network this season and the second-most-watched WNBA game on any network since 2000.There’s just one issue.NBC made essentially the same announcement six days earlier.NBC said the Fever’s July 12 game against the Las Vegas Aces averaged a Total Audience Delivery of 2.64 million viewers across NBC and Peacock.
The network called it the most-watched WNBA game of the 2026 season and the second-most-watched WNBA regular-season game since 2000.So, which network actually carried the biggest WNBA game of the year?Potentially both.The difference comes down to how the audiences were measured and how the networks worded their respective claims.CBS’s 2.579 million figure was based on Nielsen Big Data + Panel measurement.NBC’s 2.64 million figure was a combined Total Audience Delivery across NBC and Peacock, incorporating Nielsen’s television data and digital viewing measured by Adobe Analytics.In other words, CBS is claiming the most-watched WNBA game on an individual television network.
NBC is claiming the largest combined audience across its broadcast and streaming platforms.CBS and NBC both claim the ...