The 2024 NCAA women’s tournament ended with another ratings record.
ESPN reported that 18.7 million average viewers saw South Carolina win the national title with an 87-75 victory over Iowa. It exceeded the Hawkeyes’ previous two matchups as the most-watched women’s college basketball game ever.
Sunday’s championship bout, which peaked at 24 million viewers, was the most-watched basketball game in five years and the highest-rating sporting event beyond the NFL or the Olympics since 2019.
According to Sports Media Watch, the NFL accounted for the 50 most-watched sporting events of 2023. However, the South Carolina-Iowa stacked up favorably to all but one other matchup that year.
The title clash fell short of last November’s college football game between Michigan and Ohio State. Outside of The Game, the Gamecocks and Hawkeyes drew better ratings than every non-NFL sporting event in 2023.
An average of 14.69 million viewers watched UConn win the men’s basketball title over San Diego State, and 17.22 million average viewers saw Georgia dominate TCU in a lopsided college football title game.
The NBA peaked at a 13.08 million number when the Denver Nuggets won the Finals with a Game 5 win over the Miami Heat. The World Series maxed out at 11.48 million, and 9.92 million average viewers watched Iowa fall to LSU for the 2023 women’s national title.
However, more than one college football game has delivered better ratings in 2024.
January’s College Football Playoff Championship Game between Michigan and Washington garnered 25 million average ratings. Michigan’s Rose Bowl win over Alabama drew 27.2 million average viewers on New Year’s Day.
On Sunday, viewers saw South Carolina finish an undefeated season to win its third championship in eight years. Dawn Staley’s program has only lost three games in the last three seasons.
Yet many fans tuned into ESPN or ABC for Caitlin Clark, who ignited significant interest during a historic senior season. The NCAA will have to maintain these strong fan turnouts without the superstar, who can bring magnified attention to the WNBA next season.