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Valkyries-Dream Game 4 sets another WNBA Finals viewership record
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- Valkyries-Dream Game 4 sets another WNBA Finals viewership record
Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
The WNBA Finals continues to post high marks despite a series of scheduling shifts.
Saturday's Game 4 between the Golden State Valkyries and Atlanta Dream, which was moved from 3:30 p.m. ET to 1 p.m. ET to accommodate holding the game in State Farm Arena rather than the Dream's much smaller home arena, averaged 1.9 million viewers between NBC and Peacock, according to data published by the network . That audience marks the largest on record for a WNBA Finals Game 4, beating out Game 4 of the Liberty-Lynx series in 2024 (1.67 million viewers on ESPN).
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It's important to note, NBC published a Total Audience Delivery figure, which measures Peacock's streaming viewership via Adobe Analytics rather than Nielsen, making it difficult to compare data between NBC and most other networks. NBC has recently shifted some of its streaming measurements, including for the NFL, to Nielsen, though has used Adobe for the WNBA Finals. Per data from Sports Media Watch , 1.66 million viewers tuned in on NBC, with an additional 232,000 being attributed to Peacock. Beyond the Adobe caveat, it's also important to note that Nielsen's recent methodology changes have generally served to increase viewership for live sports relative to earlier data.
As expected, Games 1 and 4, both of which were broadcast by NBC, have outdrawn Games 2 and 3 on USA Network , though the margins are not very big. NBC has averaged 1.98 million viewers across its two games, while USA Network has averaged 1.52 million viewers across its pair of games. The remainder of the series is scheduled for USA Network (though all games have also streamed on Peacock).
The Valkyries' win increased by 32% versus last year's Aces-Mercury Game 4 on ESPN (1.44 million viewers) and ranks as the eighth-most watched WNBA Finals game on record. Three games this series occupy spots in the top 10, with viewership for Monday's Game 5 still unreported.
Unfortunately, another schedule shift will likely depress viewership for Thursday's Game 6, with the WNBA opting to play the game at 12:30 p.m. ET rather than in its original primetime window to allow the game to be played in State Farm Arena. The game, scheduled for USA Network, will also simulcast on E! and SyFy but not CNBC as all other Versant-owned Finals games have.
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Still, this year's Finals viewership continues a strong trend for the WNBA. The league is consistently able to draw seven-figure audiences for much of its postseason inventory, a threshold it did not surpass for 16 years prior to the 2024 season.
The post Valkyries-Dream Game 4 sets another WNBA Finals viewership record appeared first on Awful Announcing .
