WNBA profits by year has been negative 10 million dollars per annum since 1996. The league plans to generate $200 million in revenue for the 2023 season.
Apart from the loss that the league has been dealing with, the WNBA has been one of the fastest-growing leagues in terms of quality and is considered the most socially progressive league.
The reason is still unknown as to why the women's division is still not as popular as their male counterparts. The fewer number of dunks in the WNBA due to the same height of the rims could be one of the reasons as many fans want to see dunks being performed during games.
The NBA has been spending over $10 million a year as financial aid to the WNBA so that the league sustains and continues for now.
The WNBA has big aspirations for the upcoming 2023 season in terms of revenue and the upliftment of the league. If the league can cut down on expenses and come up with a better business module, the WNBA is bound to become a profit-making organization without any doubt.
The league was and still is the best women's league in all of sports and there is no denying it. When it comes to talking about the financial factor, it still does not count as a major sport.
WNBA Revenue By Year
WNBA revenue by year is projected to generate a combined team and league revenue of $180 million to $200 million in 2023. It was $102 million in 2019.
The WNBA has seen a rise in the revenue that the league generates annually. Although a slow and steady growth, it is heading in the right direction and has an approximate average revenue of $60 million annually.
Although the details regarding the finances for the previous year have not yet been disclosed, it is reported that the league doubled its revenue. The league has projected a gradual growth in the upcoming years.
The source of revenue for the league is ticket sales, merchandise, sponsorship deals, food and beverages, and broadcasting rights. The WNBA has 36 active partners for the 2023 season generating $19.36 million as the average annual deal value for these partnerships.
The WNBA has recently been granted a whopping $75 million in investment money which will be used over a five-year period. This deal will be very helpful for the success of the league.
The huge deal was possible because of the two dozen investors that believe in the league and the sport. It is solely responsible for the WNBA being valued at $1 billion.
Similarly, the WNBA's broadcasting deal in 2020 with CBS Sports was worth $25 million annually. This too increases the revenue of the league as well as expands its market to many more countries.
In a WNBA season, each team plays 40 games whereas in the NBA, they play 82 games. The WNBA season is relatively much shorter and can not generate the desired revenue through the TV audience as they have much less screen time.
The major source of revenue for the WNBA is the revenue generated by ticket sales. In the past, ticket sales contributed more than 83% of the total revenue generating over $50 million in ticket sales based on the average ticket price and the average attendance.
The viewership and revenue of the WNBA have been going up in recent years and will continue to do so. The NBA on the other hand is a completely different ball game as they generate huge numbers.
The league has brought in big numbers since it started and if compared to the NBA when it was at this stage, the WNBA is on the right track. It will surely grow with the possibility of expansion teams that may launch in 2024 or 2025.
The more the number of teams, the more revenue they will generate. This will result in more viewership and more sales and will also benefit the players at the same time.
Is WNBA Profitable?
WNBA profit margin is expected to be none since the league has never turned a profit. The league is actually losing an estimated $10 million annually.
The proper running of the league costs more than the revenue that they generate. It costs somewhere around $70 million as expenses compared to the $60 million in revenue.
The NBA is 50 years ahead of the WNBA and the newer league will surely take time to establish itself like the NBA. When compared between the two at the 25-year mark, the WNBA is ahead. If they keep up the pace then they could be on par with the NBA in the foreseeable future.
WNBA vs NBA revenue disparity is huge. The NBA season generated $10 billion in 2022 whereas the projected revenue of the WNBA in 2023 is $200 million.
The NBA generated a revenue of $6.41 billion in 2021 and $7.9 billion in 2020. The two leagues are miles apart when it comes to generating revenue and profit.
In 2019, ESPN bought the rights to broadcast the NBA games for a deal worth $2.6 billion. The same network that closed the deal with the WNBA for just $25 million.
The WNBA recorded its biggest-ever investment with the $75 million they raised to uplift the league. The NBA in 2022 generated $1.6 billion just from sponsorships.
In 2013, it was reported that six teams in the WNBA turned profits. The Sun in 2010 became the first-ever WNBA franchise to turn a profit. When it comes to the NBA, the numbers are way high, and hardly see any team turning a loss.
Stephen Curry is the highest-paid player in the NBA with an annual salary of $48.07 million and three players earn the highest salary in the WNBA. Jewell Loyd, Arike Ogunbowale, and Diana Taurasi get paid $234,936 annually.
The players in the WNBA receive a smaller percentage of the total revenue that the league generates. The player's share in 2022 was only 9.3% which saw a dip from 2019. The players were allotted 11.1% of the revenue. On the other hand, the NBA players receive about half of all the revenue that the league generates.
| NBA | WNBA |
| Revenue - $10 billion | Revenue - $60 million |
| Average Salaries - $9.6 million | Average Salaries - $147,745 |
| Tickets - $94 | Tickets - $47 |
| Highest Paid - $48.07 million | Highest Paid - 234.936 |
| Average Attendance - 17,184 | Average Attendance - 5,679 |
How Much Money Does The WNBA Lose?
The WNBA currently records an average loss of $10 million every year. The expenses of the league overshadow the revenue it generates.
It is reported that the WNBA incurred a loss of close to $12 million in 2017. This is among the unwanted and undesired records that the league has set.
Does the WNBA make money? The league does make money annually and that too a good amount. It just has not been able to turn a profit.
The only reason that the WNBA has not folded even when incurring such huge losses is because it is a subsidiary of the NBA. If it was not for the NBA, the WNBA would have run out of business a long time back.
The NBA has always been committed to supporting the WNBA whether it generates profits or records a loss. It is more about promoting and assisting the women's league for the betterment of the sport.
The big question is how does the WNBA lose money? The league has a small fan base in comparison to the NBA. The huge difference in the average attendance makes the whole case clear.
The WNBA had an average audience of more than 7,000 from 2010-2017 with the lowest being 7,318 in 2015. The numbers have seen quite a significant drop in recent years since the league only had over 5,000 fans present at the games on average.
Even the TV audience for the WNBA is very less with an average audience of only 379,000 in 2022 whereas the NBA garnered an average viewership of 1.59 million. This is the major reason that TV networks buy broadcasting rights at such a low price for the WNBA games.
