# USA Sports and NBC claim record WNBA Finals ratings, but the comparisons leave out important context

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/usa-sports-and-nbc-claim-record-wnba-finals-ratings-but-the-comparisons-leave-out-important-context/
- Published: 2026-10-31T20:41:21+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-31T21:40:35+00:00
- Original publisher: Fox News (publisher lean: Far right)
- Original article: https://www.foxnews.com/outkick-sports/usa-sports-nbc-claim-record-wnba-finals-ratings-comparisons-leave-out-important-context
- Topics: Basketball, Business, Entertainment, Markets, Sport, TV, World

## Key points

- Finals ratings combine television and streaming audiences.
- Game 4’s TV audience fell just short of the old record.
- Different formats and measurement methods complicate comparisons.

## Summary

USA Sports and NBC have promoted large audiences and records during the WNBA Finals, but the article argues that their comparisons can give an incomplete picture. Several headline figures combine television and streaming, while some releases omit the separate figures needed to compare like with like.

Game 6 averaged 1.5 million viewers across USA Network, E!, SYFY and streaming, reportedly 4% above last year’s primetime clincher. For Game 4, NBC’s 1.9 million combined audience included 1.66 million on television and 232,000 streaming viewers; the television figure was just below ESPN’s 2024 record of 1.67 million. The article also notes that Nielsen changed its measurement methods in 2025, and that this year’s Game 5 drew 1.4 million, about 35% below the 2.15 million for the 2024 winner-takes-all game.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.