Indiana Fever’s Grip on WNBA Attention Proven Through Internet Search

The Indiana Fever's impressive WNBA popularity has been proven once again.
Jul 15, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) reacts to the crowd as they take on the Connecticut Sun in the first quarter at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images
Jul 15, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) reacts to the crowd as they take on the Connecticut Sun in the first quarter at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

The Indiana Fever became the WNBA's most popular team as soon as they selected Caitlin Clark with the No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 WNBA Draft.

This was owed to Clark already being the biggest star in women's basketball despite never having played in a professional game before. Her historic career with the Iowa Hawkeyes turned her into a global sensation, and the gigantic fan base she cultivated during that time transferred over to the Fever when they selected her.

Clark and her Fever team's popularity was shown through them selling out essentially every arena they played in through 2024, merchandise sales being through the roof, and being the WNBA's most-watched team on television. This probably would have been the case even if Clark underperformed as a rookie, but her having a legendary 2024 campaign only helped matters.

Most expected Indiana to pick up right where they left off in 2025, especially after hiring Stephanie White to be the team's head coach and then adding multiple key veteran players in free agency and via trade during last offseason. And while the Fever did have a great 2025 season, it was largely without Clark on the court, given that she only played in 13 games because of injury.

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) reacts with a possible injury on July 15, 2025
Jul 15, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) reacts with a possible injury after a play against the Connecticut Sun in the second half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

Indiana Fever Dominated WNBA Interest Across Almost All of the United States

Because Clark wasn't on the court, some might assume this impacted the Fever's popularity. A graphic from Basketball Reference's 2025 WNBA Season in Review page, which was reposted on X by Miles Ehrlich of Winsidr on December 10, shows that this couldn't be further from the truth.

The graphic shows that the Fever were the most-viewed WNBA team on Basketball Reference in 41 of the 50 United States in 2025. Several West Coast teams (the Seattle Storm, the Golden State Valkyries, the Las Vegas Aces, and the Phoenix Mercury) were the most-viewed in their respective states, as were the Minnesota Lynx and the Washington Mystics (in Washington, D.C.). Aside from those, the Fever were the most-viewed team in all but three states.

Impressively enough, Indiana had an even stronger grip on Basketball Reference's view history in 2024, as they had the most-viewed WNBA team page in 46 of the 50 states.

This just goes to show that Clark (who was the most-searched player in 41 states this year) and the Fever are as popular as ever, and there's no reason to suggest that will change in 2026.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the Indiana Fever and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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