WNBA Facing Pushback Over TV Decision for Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese Rematch

To kick off the weekend, WNBA fans will get to see the final match between Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever and Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky. Indiana took the first two games of the season series, but Chicago took the most recent match.

The Clark vs. Reese rivalry has had some of the most watched sporting events over the last few years, starting with the 2023 NCAAW championship between the Iowa Hawkeyes and LSU Tigers. However, the WNBA's decision to broadcast Friday night's game is certainly a head-scratcher, given the popularity of this matchup.

Instead of having this game on a major TV network like ESPN or CBS, the WNBA elected to have the game air on ION and Fubo, which is offering a free trial to new users.

The most recent Fever vs. Sky game on June 23 aired on ESPN and drew 2.3 million viewers, the highest the WNBA has seen in 23 years. The prior matchup aired on CBS and averaged 2.25 million viewers. Fever games that have been aired on ION have only averaged 1.1 million viewers, less than half of the aforementioned two games.

WNBA fans are not happy with the league's TV decision for the final Clark vs. Reese matchup and took to social media to leave their thoughts.

"How the Sky vs Fever not on national tv?"

"WNBA Sky vs Fever should be on national TV…. Now I see why that league has been where it’s at."

"The Fever vs Sky game tonight is on…. ION lol what a missed opportunity for a huge rating on another network"

"What network is ION? Fever vs Sky not being on a major network tonight sucks…"

"Is this one another channel other than ION? asking for a friend!"

"How do you have this broadcast on ION?"

The Fever and the Sky hold the seventh and eighth seed in the WNBA playoffs, respectively. The Fever (15-16) can take the sixth seed from the Phoenix Mercury (16-16) with a win as they hold the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Sky (11-19) can avoid a potential tie with the Atlanta Dream (10-20) with a win.

Related: Caitlin Clark Makes WNBA History Against Connecticut Sun

Related: Caitlin Clark Left Fans in Disbelief After Causing Collision Between Sun Players