As the WNBA celebrates 30 years since its founding, popularity is skyrocketing and advertisers increasingly see the league as a slam dunk partner.

This fandom isn't fickle. The May 9 season opener between the Dallas Wings and the Indiana Fever was the second most-watched regular season game ever, according to the league, the latest evidence that the "Caitlin Clark Effect" has lifted the league's cultural cachet past a momentary spike.

Marketers aren't missing the chance to connect with valuable audiences, and brands are racing to partner with the league as it becomes a lasting cultural force.

"The WNBA’s strategic advantage is that it transcends sport. It has evolved into a modern entertainment and social impact platform built around basketball," said Scott Foreman, CEO of ad agency Copacino Fujikado. “Brands want proximity to empowerment, community, and progress, but consumers can smell performative values from a mile away. The WNBA doesn’t have to pretend. Those values were baked in long before marketers showed up.”

Picking teams

The WNBA's sponsor roster holds at 46 this season, tied with last year's record, according to Sports Business Journal. YouTube TV, Glossier, and Microsoft did not return, but M&M's, Skechers, and P&G joined.

“The WNBA is experiencing incredible growth, and this partnership is a powerful opportunity for our brands to show up in ways that celebrate the game and reach the WNBA’s highly engaged, passionate, and diverse fanbase,” said Mindy Sherwood, president of North America and chief sales officer at Procter & Gamble, in a press release.

Brands are also partnering with individual teams to build more geographically focused connections. Pinterest and the New York Liberty are collaborating this season to celebrate the team's mascot Ellie with paid social and digital out-of-home ads in the state, which will launch later in the summer for the playoffs. They're also teaming up with one of the WNBA's superstars.

"We’re excited to deepen our work with the Liberty through our extended partnership and our new relationship with one of the league’s most iconic athletes, Breanna Stewart," said Sara Pollack, vice president and global head of consumer marketing at Pinterest. "Stewie’s influence on and off the court makes her such a compelling partner. She already shows up on Pinterest organically, through her fans, her style, her routines, her game-day presence, so the relationship felt natural."

The nature of the brand partnerships also reveals how WNBA fans are embracing the league.

Connecting with fans

For many communities, cheering on WNBA teams has become part of the local experience, with fans backing their team both through commerce and by tuning in to games.

"WNBA fandom now goes beyond just watching the game. People are deciding how they want to show up, support their team, and participate in the moment," said Pollack. "[Pinterest] searches for 'WNBA game outfit' are up 88% YoY, as an example. So the opportunity is not just to advertise around the WNBA’s popularity, but to help fans engage more deeply and bring their fandom to life."

That gives marketers the chance to reach audiences ready to back the league, but it also creates pitfalls for brands whose campaigns lack the same care.

"Fans are engaging not just with the competition on the court, but with the personalities, values, community, and broader conversations around the league," said Pollack. "That creates a different kind of marketing opportunity; one that has to feel more thoughtful, more authentic, and more connected to how fans actually participate in the culture. The scale, visibility, and cultural relevance of the WNBA are much bigger now, so brands have to show up with a real understanding of what makes the league and its fans distinct."

Fielding the future

The Winter Olympics and the World Cup have made 2026 a sports-heavy year. The early ratings suggest neither event has dimmed WNBA fandom.

And the future looks bright. Last summer the league announced that it would add three new teams, bringing the full roster to a record 18 teams. Cleveland's team will join the league in 2028, followed by Detroit in 2029, and Philadelphia in 2030.

"This is reflecting, in my opinion, a broader truth that women's sports isn't just a temporary trend that's going to fade in relevance for viewers and advertisers; it's something that is increasingly of interest to audiences," said our analyst Marisa Jones on an episode of "Behind the Numbers." "I think as we're seeing the WNBA strike deals with platforms like Prime Video and other streamers, that's really only going to allow this growth to continue trending upward."

Done right, those campaigns become participation rather than interruption.

"The most rewarding part has been helping make fandom feel tangible and participatory," said Pollack. "We’re always trying to help people move from inspiration to action, and this partnership gives us a real way to do that with fans."

This was originally featured in the EMARKETER Daily newsletter. For more marketing insights, statistics, and trends, subscribe here.