The Women’s National Basketball Association’s viewership and attendance boomed during the 2024 season as the league’s popularity skyrocketed due to young stars like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.

The league’s games attracted more than 54 million unique viewers, an all-time record, across various networks including DisneyABC and ESPN, Paramount Globals CBS, EW Scripps’ According to information released by the WNBA on Friday, Ion and NBA TV are among those participating.

Additionally, viewership at WNBA games reached its highest level in 22 years, increasing nearly 50% since the 2023 season, according to the league. There were 154 sold-out games during the year, more than triple the 45 sold-out games in 2023.

This season’s explosive metrics and popularity came with a top rookie class, including Clark of the Indiana Fever and Reese of the Chicago Sky, and as the Las Vegas Aces bid for their third straight championship. The numbers underscore why the league was able to land a lucrative new media rights deal and is in an expansion phase: The WNBA announced this month that it would add a 15th team in Portland for the 2026 season.

As attention to the league increased, more players said they had experienced online harassment or racism. When asked about the dynamic on CNBC earlier this month, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert did not specifically condemn the hatred toward players, which sparked criticism across the league.

She later clarified that she rejects “hatred or racism.”

Clark’s influence was also evident in the Fever’s attendance figures. Every WNBA team saw double-digit growth in viewership year-over-year. However, the Fever saw a more than four-fold increase, significantly more than the 69 percent growth of the Los Angeles Sparks, who ranked second according to the WNBA.

The WNBA also saw significant growth in merchandise and community engagement over the course of the season. The WNBA’s social media accounts recorded nearly 2 billion video views, more than four times the number from the 2023 season.

The increased attention has led to a $2.2 billion media rights deal for 11 seasons, with a price revaluation after the 2028 season, CNBC previously reported. The WNBA’s media rights were negotiated earlier this year as part of the broader NBA agreement.

During the rights negotiations – which resulted in a total $77 billion, 11-year deal – the NBA had pushed for more money given the WNBA’s rising popularity.

During the 2024 WNBA season, 22 broadcasts of regular season games averaged at least 1 million viewers.

Several individual games broke WNBA viewership records on ESPN, and this was the most-watched regular season ever for ESPN, averaging 1.19 million viewers, up 170% from last season, according to the league. The 2024 season featured the seven most-watched WNBA games of all time on ESPN and the top two on ABC.

It was also the most-watched regular season ever for CBS Sports, with CBS Sports’ five most-watched WNBA games of all time, including the Sky at Fever game in June, which averaged 2.25 million viewers.

The explosive viewership has continued into the postseason, as a Sept. 22 match between the Fever and Connecticut Sun drew record viewership, according to ESPN. Clark’s Fever were eliminated in the first round in two games.

The league’s playoffs are now in the semifinals, which features a rematch between the Aces and last year’s runners-up, the New York Liberty.