Caitlin Clark’s first major final with Team USA breaks FIBA World Cup viewership records
· Yahoo Sports
Team USA’s 2026 FIBA Basketball World Cup final against France stands alone as the most-watched FIBA World Cup game of all time.
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The days of women’s basketball being a sideshow behind men’s basketball are long gone, as the WNBA is exploding in popularity behind a new generation of superstars like Clark and Angel Reese.
The 2026 World Cup was the first time that stars like Clark, Reese, and Paige Bueckers represented the national team at the highest level. As a result, it was a record-setting run for Team USA.
Team USA 2026 World Cup viewership numbers make history with Caitlin Clark
TNT Sports revealed the viewership numbers from the 2026 FIBA World Cup, revealing that the final peaked at 1.5 million viewers despite going up against the NFL’s first Sunday of the season as well as the US Open final.
“A record-setting FIBAWWC across TNT Sports! TNT Sports US delivered the FIVE most-watched FIBA Women’s World Cup games ever, capped by a thrilling Championship Weekend: Saturday’s USA-Spain Semifinal on TBS & HBO Max: 938K average viewers | 1.2 million peak viewers. Sunday’s USA-France Final on TNT, truTV & HBO Max: 1.2 million average viewers | 1.5 million peak viewers.”
The numbers would have been unquestionably bigger if they didn’t compete directly against the NFL and the US Open, but this success is still a staggering accomplishment.
Team USA beat France 97-79 in the Final. Clark put up 12 points and three assists in the win, ending the tournament as Team USA’s assists leader.
Caitlin Clark’s presence is not a coincidence
Team USA always features the best players of the WNBA, but the fact that the 2026 World Cup squad is the one that broke these records further highlights the appeal of Caitlin Clark.
Photo by Milad Payami/FIBA via Getty ImagesThe 10-most viewed WNBA events and games since 2001 have all featured Clark, breaking over 20 years of records within her first three seasons.
The WNBA’s all-time viewership record sits at 5.04 million from the 1997 clash between the New York Liberty vs. Los Angeles Sparks, the opening weekend of the WNBA.
The second-most viewed game also comes from that weekend with 3.59 million for the Charlotte Sting vs. Phoenix Mercury.
Clark’s first All-Star game in 2024 ranks No. 3 all-time (3.44 million), and her August 2026 clash against the Chicago Sky recently broke into the all-time top-five with 3.31 million.
She features four times in the all-time top-10 and all ten times in the post-NBC era from 2000 onwards.
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