The WNBA will be getting more exposure after a successful opening weekend. Thirteen games have been added to the league’s national television schedule just two days into the start of the regular season.

Thirteen games have been added to the ESPN Networks’ coverage of women’s professional basketball. ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC are now set to broadcast 37 games, up from 24, this summer.

With CBS and CBS Sports Network also airing games, 77 total WNBA regular-season contests are on the national TV schedule. All 12 teams are set to play a 22-game schedule in Bradenton, Florida, where the league has established a bubble in hopes of keeping players safe from the coronavirus.

The regular season is scheduled to conclude on Sept. 12 before an eight-team playoff. The newly added broadcasts include games to be played between Aug. 15 and Sept. 10.

Before the coronavirus pandemic delayed the start of the season, WNBA teams were expected to play a 36-game schedule.

An average of 540,000 viewers watched the season opener between the Los Angeles Sparks and Phoenix Mercury Saturday on ABC. It marked a 20% increase in viewership over the 2019 opener on the same network

It was the WNBA’s most-watched opener in eight years.

An average of 419,000 viewers watched the Seattle Storm defeat New York Liberty on ESPN Saturday afternoon. It was likely the most-watched WNBA regular-season game on cable in four years, according to Sports Media Watch.

No WNBA player in Bradenton has tested positive for COVID-19 since the initial quarantine period in the bubble.

Several leagues, including MLB and the PGA Tour, have seen a significant bump in ratings for their return after the coronavirus halted play in March.

Natasha Cloud Washington Mystics WNBA
Natasha Cloud #9 of the Washington Mystics celebrates against the Connecticut Sun during Game 5 of the 2019 WNBA Finals at St Elizabeths East Entertainment & Sports Arena on October 10, 2019 in Washington, DC.
RELATED STORIES
Coronavirus