Caitlin Clark’s salary has that mass rep. — a former Div. 1 athlete — calling for change

The Indiana Fever selected Caitlin Clark with the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft on Monday, capping years of excitement surrounding the old Iowa guard and potentially signaling a new era for professional women’s basketball.

Clark’s historic run at Iowa and his dynamic skillset are helping to attract more fans than ever to the sport. But with the added attention comes a new realization for many: WNBA players not only make less money than their NBA counterparts, they also make significantly less.

Clark’s base salary will be fair $76,535 as a rookie. The first player selected in this year’s NBA draft is expected to earn around $10.5 million.

These differences caused a wave of consternation on social networks, and this brouhaha reached the places of power this week.

U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan, the only former Division I female athlete in Congress, said the pay gap is “outrageous” in an article on X this week. She called for measures to “dismantle” the gender pay gap.

President Joe Biden also spoke.

“But right now we’re seeing that even if you’re the best, women aren’t getting their fair share,” Biden said in a statement. job on »

Clark’s rise and battles with other recently drafted stars like LSU’s Angel Reese and South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso have coincided with a massive increase in viewership for the women’s NCAA tournament. According to ESPN, 18.9 million viewers watched the championship game, where Cardoso’s Gamecocks held off Clark’s Hawkeyes.

A peak of 24.1 million viewers was recorded during the last 15 minutes of the match. It was the most-watched women’s college basketball game of all time, and the most-watched college basketball game that ESPN has ever broadcast, regardless of gender. It has attracted more viewers than any other non-football annual sporting event on any network since 2019. Viewership is up 90% year over year, according to ESPN.

That momentum continued during the WNBA Draft, which attracted 2.446 million viewers, a 307% increase from last year. After Fever selected Clark, the franchise’s ticket prices skyrocketed. The Fever finished last season with a dismal record of 13 wins and 27 losses. Now, the 10 most expensive WNBA games for the upcoming season are all Fever games, according to Forbes.

Could this translate into higher salaries for all WNBA players? That could be determined in 2025, when the league prepares to negotiate a new television deal with its broadcast partners. More fans and a generation of bankable young superstars would likely give the league a better position at the negotiating table. The WNBA just had its most-watched regular season in 21 years and recorded its highest total attendance in 13 years. The WNBA and NBA currently have a joint agreement with Disney’s ESPN. WNBA officials hope to separate some media rights from the NBA, with the goal of receiving up to $100 million per season from broadcast partners.

Also in 2025, WNBA players are expected to opt out of their current collective bargaining agreement. By doing so, they will be able to negotiate a different revenue sharing agreement. Players earn a share of the league’s revenue, meaning that as the value of the league increases, players earn more money.

In the NBA, players can receive 50% of all shared revenue. But in the WNBA, players receive only 50 percent of “additional revenue,” a term defined as income above the league’s goal for that season. Ultimately, about 40% of all NBA league revenue goes toward player salaries, compared to about 10% of league revenue going toward player salaries in the WNBA, Vox reported.

WNBA revenue could be increased by adding more games and teams. The NBA season is currently about twice as long as the WNBA. The men’s league has 30 teams compared to 12 for the WNBA. That will soon change, as the WNBA prepares to add two more teams by 2026. Commissioner Cathy Engelbert recently said she is “pretty confident” in the league’s ability to reach 16 teams by 2026. 2028.

Many WNBA players supplement their income by playing overseas during the offseason. That’s exactly what Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner was doing when she was arrested by Russian authorities and detained for nearly 10 months. In an interview after returning to the United States, Griner cited the gender wage gap as the reason many go abroad.

Of course, star players can earn extra money through sponsorship deals. Clark and Reese had the two highest name, image and likeness (NIL) ratings for female basketball players during their college careers, according to the AP. Clark’s previous contract with Nike ended when she left Iowa, but the company is reportedly preparing to offer her a new eight-figure deal and a signature shoe.