Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever made history on Sunday, August 23, after setting a WNBA viewership record. Their game against the Chicago Sky, which the Fever won 113-90, recorded over 3 million views, per NBC reports,

On August 26, Front Office Sports posted an announcement on X, revealing that the game’s viewership had broken records across multiple TV networks. This made it the most-watched WNBA regular-season game since the 1997 season opener.

“This season, Caitlin Clark and the Fever have set the WNBA viewership record on CBS, NBC, ESPN, Prime, USA Network, and Ion,” the X post by Front Office Sports read.

Front Office Sports commented under the same August 26 X post, further elaborating that Sunday’s game had recorded 3.31 million views on NBC and Peacock.

Although certain moments of the game, such as Enes Kanter Freedom’s argument with Sky guard Natasha Cloud, generated controversy, what stole the show was Kelsey Mitchell and Caitlin Clark scoring a combined 67 points for the Fever.

Clark alone scored 37 points and 10 assists, making it her fifth career game with 30+ points. She also recorded a career-high of eight 3-pointers, shooting 8 out of 12 shots from beyond the arc.

Naturally, Fever fans and Clark supporters were ecstatic, and took the opportunity to emphasize the Indiana guard’s impact on the WNBA.

Fans celebrate Caitlin Clark’s achievements during the Sunday game on X

Fans began commenting under Front Office Sports’ X post, showing their support for the Indiana Fever star. Some enthusiastic fans went so far as to suggest that at this point, Clark defined the league.

“She’s the league and the face of the W hands down,” one such fan commented.

Others pointed out that they enjoy watching the chemistry between Clark and her Fever teammates.

“Certainly know who everyone's watching the CC effect in real time Caitlin Clark and this Indy squad is too entertaining too ignore,“ one Fever supporter wrote.

Another fan reiterated why the game was so exciting for viewers in general, and for Clark fans especially, listing off the Fever guard’s achievements. They also expressed their support of Clark’s MVP run.

“It’s the Caitlin Clark effect And she delivered with 8 three pointers made , another Double Double, the only player with five 30+ point 10 assist games in WNBA history!!!! 37 point 8 three pointers 10 assist 2 rebounds 1 steal Without a doubt, Caitlin Clark @CaitlinClark22 is the 2026 WNBA’s “MVP…,” the fan wrote.

One fan took the opportunity to call out former NFL player and analyst Emmanuel Acho, who had doubted Clark's importance in the W in the past.

"@EmmanuelAcho what were you saying about the WNBA not needing Caitlin?" the fan asked.

However, some WNBA fans disagreed, claiming that the only reason Fever games recorded such massive viewership was because the WNBA was biased and broadcast only Fever games on national television.

But one X user had an answer for that as well.

“Where did this ludicrous argument come from that the Fever only get these numbers because they get key TV spots? The networks choose the teams to feature based on who they know will get the most potential viewers. This is sports television 101. It has been this way for 80 years,” they commented.

While some accused the WNBA of favoritism, others called out the media for crediting the Fever's win and the high viewership count to Clark alone.

However, an overwhelming majority of fans agreed that the Fever guard had been the one to make the Sunday game memorable.

Written by

Arundhoti Palit

Edited by

Arundhoti Palit