WNBA semifinal openers average 1.15 million viewers, up 10%

The WNBA's two semifinal openers averaged 1.15 million viewers on Oct. 4, up 10% from the opening pair last year, Front Office Sports reported.

Liberty–Dream averaged 1.17 million on ABC. Aces–Valkyries followed with 1.12 million across NBC and Peacock, as both games aired during the NFL's Sunday schedule.

The NBC and Peacock total combined a Nielsen-measured television audience of 1.01 million with 111,000 streaming viewers measured by Adobe Analytics, according to Sports Media Watch. That combined figure should be read with its platform scope attached.

The semifinals followed a record first round that averaged 1.30 million across 10 games, up 37% from 2025. Those first-round and semifinal averages describe different sets of games.

Fever–Aces Game 3 on Oct. 1 supplied the first round's largest audience at 2.25 million. Wings–Valkyries Game 3 on Oct. 2 averaged 1.2 million.

Broadcast access also changed between years. Both 2026 semifinal openers aired on broadcast networks; last year's opening pair aired on ABC and ESPN, respectively.