The WNBA's Popularity Explosion: On-Court Talent and Off-Court Influence

After one more look back on the WNBA Finals — and Finals MVP A’ja Wilson taking a seat next to Ben Pickman at her victory press conference — Zena, Sabreena, and Ben take a bigger-picture look at the 2025 WNBA season. They get into some of the trends that defined this year, from the demographics of the fans and the explosion of the WNBA into popular culture to some on-court trends. Finally, Ben absolutely stumps Zena and Sabreena with one final game testing their ability to remember the most anomalous stat lines of the year.  References: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6575335/2025/08/26/phoenix-mercury-roster-wnba/ https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6702391/2025/10/10/wnba-fans-young-boys/ 00:00 Intro 04:38 A’ja Wilson remains consistently excellence  07:38 Looking at how much has changed for A’ja over the past 5 years 10:32 Without question the Aces want A’ja, Chelsea and Jackie back 11:56 The influx of a new generation of WNBA fans 16:23 The WNBA's core fanbase has undergone a demographic shift 20:46 A new age of WNBA player’s shoe deals 23:57 How player brand deals help shape the W’s commercial success 28:11 What’s drawing international stars to the WNBA? 38:53 The WNBA is seeing increased parity 42:04 Are floaters making a comeback in the WNBA? #wnba #signature #kicks Thumbnail: Adam Hagy, Erica Denhoff via Getty Images Follow and listen to the audio podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/no-offseason-the-athletic-womens-basketball-show/id1699815468 Leave a comment wherever you’re listening, or email us at NoOffseason@TheAthletic.com. You can also find us on socials: -Instagram: @tanooffseason -TikTok: @no_offseason -Zena on BlueSky: @zenakeita -Ben on BlueSky: @benpickman -Sabreena on BlueSky: @sabreenajm -Chantel on BlueSky: @chanteljennings Visit the Yahoo Women's Sports Hub: https://sports.yahoo.com/womens-sports/?guccounter=1 Full Episodes Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5UWQzuMYdm7txmok7cpMB3YlgkwrT2E0 Shorts Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5UWQzuMYdm72uhBjsd24rsh5teZtgUpS