MINNEAPOLIS — Throughout the ultimate week of the common season, together with her Minnesota Lynx racing towards the No. 1 total seed within the WNBA playoffs, Minnesota season ticket holder Sara Mantia lastly sat all the way down to do the mathematics.
On a bit of lined, lime inexperienced paper, she wrote the ticket price for every potential dwelling sport within the WNBA postseason.
Spherical 1: $127
Spherical 2: $159
Spherical 3: $278
She multiplied that by the potential variety of dwelling video games in every spherical (as the general prime seed: two within the first spherical, three within the semifinals and 4 within the WNBA Finals) after which multiplied once more by the variety of season tickets she presently has (two) to see what the potential ceiling can be for her bills.
It was $3,686.
Mantia had one phrase to sum up her response to seeing that quantity written down for the Lynx’s potential postseason run within the Goal Heart: “Yikes.”
If there have been a German phrase for the sensation of eager for your workforce to go as deep within the postseason as potential whereas additionally grappling with the rising private monetary prices of that success, maybe the phrase can be “Sportsfandomfruede.”
It’s a posh phenomenon that has lengthy impacted followers throughout a number of leagues, and whereas WNBA ticket costs nonetheless lag different sports activities — just like the NBA playoffs or common season NFL and MLB video games (which noticed a 300 % leap in tickets between 1991 and 2003, in accordance with the Fan Value Index) or the World Cup — the will increase some WNBA followers have seen in current seasons have left them wrestling with the brand new realities of their favourite league.
Although WNBA postseason tickets stay among the many most reasonably priced in comparison with different skilled sports activities, the common WNBA first-round playoff ticket has risen 78 % over the past 5 years, in accordance with TickPick.
Demand for this season’s playoff tickets is up 27 % year-over-year, in accordance with StubHub.
On Saturday, the day earlier than playoff video games began, Golden State Valkyries ticket costs had been main the way in which. The least costly ticket not on the resale market to even get by the door was $76 for standing-room solely. If you happen to really needed a seat inside Chase Heart, you’d have to pay $83 for the nook higher bowl. In the meantime, courtside seats had been listed on resale for as a lot as $4,130 apiece.
Because the playoffs began Sunday morning, the least costly ticket in Atlanta was $67, and for Washington Mystics followers eager to see their workforce play at dwelling Wednesday in Recreation 2 of the collection in opposition to the Dream — Washington’s first dwelling playoff sport because the franchise received the title in 2019 — they’d have to shell out north of $300 for higher bowl seating.
“I actually needed to sit down and decide: Is that this actually value going to once we can go to a bar and watch it on TV? Or do we actually wish to be there and watch it reside? It wasn’t a straightforward determination,” Indiana Fever season-ticket holder Jessie Meranda stated. “Can I swing it? The place would I make concessions? Meaning I don’t spend as a lot on Christmas. … Does that imply no journeys, and we’d fairly have sports activities and leisure?”
In the end, Meranda determined the sacrifice was value it. Her expertise inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse a season in the past, when the Fever had been with out Caitlin Clark and nonetheless superior to Recreation 5 of the semis earlier than falling to the Las Vegas Aces, made her optimistic for her workforce’s 2026 probabilities. With Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell’s n, Meranda felt assured she would possibly witness some franchise historical past.
She needed to be within the constructing.
That’s what has fueled the current rocketship journey that’s the WNBA. In 2024, when Clark and Angel Reese had been rookies, the league recorded its largest attendance within the 2000s … earlier than breaking that mark in 2025 … after which breaking it once more in 2026. ESPN, the WNBA’s longest tv associate, recorded a historic yr, saying a 17 % year-over-year improve in viewership, together with main progress within the 18- to 24-year-old age group (27 %).
Lately, valuations have exploded. The Valkyries grew to become the primary ladies’s billion-dollar franchise in simply their second season. The league will develop from 12 groups in 2024 to 18 groups by 2030 (with growth charges reportedly ballooning five-fold — the Valkyries paid a $50 million charge in 2023 in comparison with Cleveland, Philadelphia and Detroit’s $250-million checks handed to the league in 2025). A landmark collective bargaining settlement, signed forward of this season, introduced concerning the league’s first million-dollar gamers.
Because the 2026 playoffs started, many spectators who got here by the gates are spending greater than ever on their WNBA fandom.
Final postseason, the Dream-Fever first-round matchup led the way in which with a mean ticket value of $87, whereas Valkyries-Lynx averaged $72 a pop in accordance with TickPick. The Liberty-Mercury averaged $58 per first-round ticket, and admission for the Aces-Storm collection got here in at $48 per ticket.
It’s no shock that the very best first-game common through the 2025 postseason was Recreation 1 of the Fever-Dream collection, the Fevers’ first dwelling playoff sport since 2016 — tickets averaged $115 every.
With league attendance at an all-time excessive this season (three of the top-12 most-attended WNBA video games of all time occurred this season) and the WNBA smashing viewership information, reaching over 88.5 million distinctive viewers, it’s truthful to anticipate that these costs will rise but once more because the 2026 postseason progresses.
That’s, in fact, what Mantia got here to phrases with as she did the mathematics. And the following a part of her equation? Determining learn how to offset a few of these prices if the Lynx can go all the way in which.
She and her husband, Lynx season-ticket holders for practically a decade, had already made concessions of their fandom after their 2026 season-ticket costs rose 26 % — particularly, concessions. The couple had spent much less on meals and drinks at Goal Heart and determined to chop again on merchandise.
Now, with the numbers in entrance of her, she began interested by methods to make a probably lengthy playoff run impression her finances only a bit much less.
“As we’re going by the playoffs,” Mantia stated, “I’ll positively be taking a look at promoting some tickets to assist offset the worth.”
Mantia’s expertise isn’t particularly distinctive. It’s turning into the norm for league followers.
Barbara Kinney, a photojournalist within the Bay Space, put in her $25 deposit for 2025 season tickets with the Valkyries as quickly as she might. She had been a WNBA season-ticket holder with the Seattle Storm for a decade when she lived in Seattle within the 2000s, however after relocating to the Bay Space, her solely probabilities pre-Valks to see the W had been when she’d journey to video games in different markets.
When Kinney bought the details about season ticket pricing forward of the inaugural season — $9,150 for a pair within the decrease bowl — she determined to separate the tickets with a pal to make it extra reasonably priced. Earlier than the season, they sat down and went by the schedule, divvying up the tickets so every individual might attend half of the house video games. Even so, she spent about $4,500 through the first season to see 11 video games in individual.
Kinney stated the Valkyries folded two 2026 playoff sport costs ($1,110 for 2 video games, $555 for her seat) into the deposit for 2027 tickets, that are rising 23 %. However any video games past the primary two 2026 playoff battles might be a further price. The second spherical will run her $2,550 for the pair; for the finals, $6,000.
“I really need them to win, nevertheless it’s going to be a bit of costly,” Kinney stated.
When placing her 2027 deposit down — subsequent season’s complete will run $12,480 for the 2 seats — Kinney started interested by the longer term and the way she’ll be capable to proceed having fun with the Valkyries in individual. With retirement on the horizon, she’s realizing she would possibly have to make some onerous selections: discovering a 3rd individual to separate seats with (thus attending solely a 3rd of Golden State’s video games) or shifting her seats farther up within the area.
Kinney is aware of that it’s not simply the charges to get within the door. As soon as inside Chase Heart, purchases can rack up shortly. Since she’s pretty frugal exterior of her WNBA purchases and her padel workforce, she needs to really get pleasure from her Valkyries sport nights. But when she and her grownup daughter, her typical Valkyries seat associate, every will get a beer or a glass of wine with some nachos, their invoice can simply exceed $100.
Over the course of their half-season’s value of tickets, that’s one other $1,000-plus.
For followers who see an evening on the area as a chance to have a beverage (or two) and luxuriate in themselves, concessions add up shortly. Even the least costly choices in arenas can simply run a invoice north of $60 for a household.
| Workforce | Least costly beer | Massive soda | Scorching canine |
|---|---|---|---|
|
$12.75
|
$5.00
|
$7.00
|
|
|
$9.99
|
$7.99
|
$5.99
|
|
|
$14.95
|
$8.65
|
$8.65
|
|
|
$11.99
|
$6.99
|
$7.99
|
|
|
$13.00
|
$7.75
|
$9.50
|
|
|
$18.00
|
$7.75
|
$8.00
|
|
|
$17.50
|
$8.25
|
$8.99
|
|
|
$15.50
|
$8.99
|
$7.75
|
Ebony Lagrand has been attending video games because the New York Liberty moved again to Barclays Heart through the 2021 season.
“After we first began coming earlier than they bought actually, actually fashionable, earlier than they received the championship, we’d do the field,” Lagrand stated.
Now? She opts for tickets within the $80-90 vary (a far cry from the present value for containers). For the Liberty’s dwelling first-round playoff sport, that value will barely get followers into the center part of Barclays.
She stated with concession pricing, she by no means eats on the area, and if she will get a drink — which may price upwards of $25 — she’s limiting herself to at least one.
“I attempt to do all the things earlier than,” Lagrand stated about dinner or pre-game meals. “I solely come to sit down down.”
However even for followers that may wish to take within the playoffs from dwelling, there’s a rising price. Final season, the ESPN/ABC household broadcast all playoff video games. However now, with extra networks getting into the ladies’s basketball area, followers have to shell out cash to a number of streaming providers and platforms to look at each sport.
For the WNBA postseason, which might have as much as 17 days of video games over three rounds, 4 streaming providers or platforms will carry video games: ESPN/ABC, USA, Peacock and Amazon Prime. Not solely is it a puzzle to determine a streaming plan to catch all of the video games, nevertheless it additionally nets out to nearly $75 for a month’s value of streaming.
That actually beats the worth of tickets, however for some sports activities followers, being within the area throughout your workforce’s run to a title is priceless.
Except — like Lynx fan Sara Mantia — you’ve added the tickets up already, after which you may put a fairly particular quantity on it: $3,686.
— Annie Costabile and Marcus Thompson II contributed to this report.
This text initially appeared in c.
Minnesota Lynx, New York Liberty, Washington Mystics, Atlanta Dream, Indiana Fever, Dallas Wings, Las Vegas Aces, Golden State Valkyries, WNBA, Sports activities Enterprise, ladies's sports activities
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